Mark: Recent Episodes
Trinity Church
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, September 19, 2021 Walking Trees
Introduction:
The Miracle Worker (1962): In the movie, which is based on true events, Helen Keller is both blind and deaf because of a fever she had as an infant. She can’t communicate. Nor can people communicate with her. Her family hires Anne Sullivan as her teacher to try to teach her how to communicate—to learn letters and words through sign language in the palm of her hand. Helen resists all attempts at being taught. Sullivan teaches her letters, but for Helen they have not meaning; it’s just a hand signal game. But once when they were retrieving water from a fountain outside the house, Anne sticks Hellen’s hand under the spout while she simultaneously gives the sign for water on her hand. Helen Keller describes the incident in her autobiography, The Story of My Life:
As the cool stream gushed over one hand she spelled into the other the word water, first slowly, then rapidly. I stood still, my whole attention fixed upon the motions of her fingers. Suddenly I felt a misty consciousness as of something forgotten–a thrill of returning thought; and somehow the mystery of language was revealed to me. I knew then that “w-a-t-e-r” meant the wonderful cool something that was flowing over my hand. That living word awakened my soul, gave it light, hope, joy, set it free! I left the well-house eager to learn. Everything had a name, and each name gave birth to a new thought. As we returned to the house every object which I touched seemed to quiver with life. That was because I saw everything with the strange, new sight that had come to me.
This strange new sight came to Helen Keller though the living word that awakened her soul in combination with the physical touch of her teacher’s hand in her hand.
This must be something like how the blind man in this story from Mark felt. After his encounter with Jesus—when Jesus touched his hand—his whole world quivered with life.
But it’s also a picture of how God’s grace comes to each of us. In light of that, it’s worth walking through this story verse-by-verse:
v.22
22 They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him.
This verse marks a major shift in the book of Mark. Jesus now begins his journey from Bethsaida (a small fishing village on the north shore of Galilee) down south to the city of Jerusalem where he will die on the cross.
What’s interesting is that this journey—which takes place from chapter 8-10—begins and ends with Jesus healing a blind man. Just as Jesus now departs for the cross, he heals a blind man. A right before he arrives in Jerusalem, he heals a blind man.
Why is this the case?
One reason is that this entire section is characterized by Jesus telling his disciples what he’s come to do. On three different occasions Jesus explicitly tells them, “I’m going to be handed over, mocked, spit on, and killed. Three days later I will rise.” But the disciples are blinded by their expectations.
They are the ones who need new eyes because they can’t see or understand how God will reveal his grace and glory in their lives.
Are we so different from the disciples? We have our own blind spots. It’s easy to lie to ourselves about who we really are; excuse our faults, minimize our sins.
Paul Tripp writes: “My self-perception is as accurate as a carnival mirror.”
It’s also easy to be pessimistic and miss the ways God’s is revealing his glory and grace in our lives.
This is one of the reasons we emphasize Growth Groups at Trinity Church. We need other people in our lives who know us, listen to us, pray for us. People who are willing to point
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, September 5, 2021
Mark 7:31-37
When Jesus Spits
Introduction:
This story speaks to two very different views of the world.
On the one hand there are certain Christians who are only concerned about spiritual matters. For them, to be a Christian means that when you die you go to heaven. This world and this life are just a big waiting room or lobby where we hang out until Jesus takes us away.
Oliver Wendell Holms once said, “There are some people who are so heavenly minded they are of no earthly good.”
On the other hand, there are people who believe that the material world is all there is. There is no such thing as a supernatural realm. People don’t have souls. There is no God.
In the words of John Lennon, “No hell below us, above us only sky.”
This story in Mark invites us to ask: * What if reality is something more than either of these views? * What if the spiritual realm and the physical world were intended to kiss? * What if heaven and earth were made for one another?
This is a short passage, only 8 verses, so we’ll just walk through it a couple verses at a time.
v.31-32
31 Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis. 32 There, some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged Jesus to place his hand on him.
Two observations about these verses:
- Mark reports the geographical journey of Jesus.
He travels from Tyre to Sidon to the Sea of Galilee to the region of the Decapolis.
If Jesus were wearing a Garmin watch with a GPS, it would show that he took a circuitous route to get from Point A to Point B. It would be like us going from here to Livingstone by traveling through Helena. Not really the shortest distance.
And this is precisely why Mark reports Jesus’ trek. These are not just random places on a map. Tyre, Sidon, and the region of the Decapolis were all places where Gentiles (non-Jews) live.
Jesus’ message is not just for people like him—the Jews. He is launching a global movement. He goes out of his way to move toward people who need to hear the gospel.
It’s worth pausing and asking: If you could look at a map of all the places you went this past week, what would the map look like? Where did you go? Who did you go and see? Was it only people who are like you? Who believe what you believe?
Jesus’ journey shows that he moved toward people unlike him.
- Jesus returns to the Decapolis
This region was called the Decapolis because it was an area with 10 different cities.
Jesus has been here before. In Mark 5:1-20, Jesus enters the Decapolis and meets a man possessed by multiple demons named “Legion.” Jesus casts out the demons and sets the man free spiritually.
But here, in this story, when Jesus returns to the Decapolis, he meets a man who suffers not from a spiritual disability, but a physical one. This man is deaf and unable to speak.
And so already, in just these first two verses, we begin to see some sort of collision between the spiritual (a demon possessed man) and the physical (a deaf man).
We wonder, “How will these two worlds come together?”
V.33-34
33 After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34 He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”).
June 27, 2021
Mark 7:24-30
Crumbs from the Table
Introduction:
In this passage, Jesus’ interaction with this woman comes across as off-putting for a couple of reasons.
First, here is a woman who is in a desperate situation. Her daughter is sick. Perhaps dying. She musters the courage to come and ask Jesus for help and Jesus initially rebuffs her request. How many people throughout history have desperately cried out to God for help—only to have their requests denied? This is enough of a reason for many to leave the faith.
But second, and more disturbing is the way Jesus denies this woman her request. She says, “my daughter needs help.” He replies, “It’s not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” This comes across as not only harsh and offense, but it seems to be a racial slur. Jews referred to Gentiles as dogs. It’s intentionally insulting.
Which leads to the broader question: Doesn’t this entire episode show that the Bible is a book based on ancient, chauvinistic, racist morality? How could any modern person with any sense of decency ascribe to such an outdated religion?
Reddit post: I don't think the bible is a good moral guide in today's world. It might have been decent compared to other religions in the ancient world, but it seems like we can do so much better today.
How do I as a Christian respond to that? Part of me wants to answer this objection by quoting CS Lewis: “If you can’t understand books written for grown-ups, then you shouldn’t talk about them.”
But there’s much more to say than that. I want to show that this story is the opposite of what you think it is. It’s a story about crossing boarders that divide us, loving your enemies, having indomitable faith, and being transformed by the unstoppable grace of God.
This is a short passage, only 7 verses, so we’ll just walk through it one verse at a time.
v.24 Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his presence secret.
So far in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus and the disciples have been going non-stop, 24/7, with hardly a chance to eat or rest. They’ve been trying to get away for some R&R, but they continually get interrupted. Crowds follow them. Storms deter them. Pharisees launch smear campaigns against them.
Now, finally, Jesus and his disciples leave the region of Galilee altogether. They go to the non-Jewish city of Tyre. They go incognito. Like movie stars with their sunglasses and baseball caps on trying to avoid the press. They enter a house secretly.
Finally, a chance to rest!
You can picture the scene. Jesus enters the house. Maybe makes himself a sandwich, takes his sandals off, puts his feet up, puts his phone on do-not-disturb, turns on the game, and just as he gets ready to take a bite...there’s a knock at the door.
This woman he’s never met arrives. And this is where the story begins.
v.25-26 In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet. 26 The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.
These two short verses tell you everything you need to know about this woman. She is not a neutral figure.
Imagine if Ben Shapiro were to show up at the democratic national convention. This is 100xs worse!
Right away, we notice several things about her that would make any ancient, orthodox Jew squirm uncomfortably. She’s the exact opposite of Jesus in every respect.
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Different genders.
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Different races. She is
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, June 20, 2021 The Stain
Introduction:
A few years back, Annmarie and I really got into the television show “Sherlock Holmes” starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman. The show was consistent with Arthur Conan Doyle’s original stories. The most exciting parts for me is when Sherlock would enter a crime scene and immediately know what happened.
In the first episode, the police ask Sherlock to look at a scene where a woman supposedly committed suicide. However, Sherlock, with his acute observation skills, looks at all the clues. He says, “She didn’t commit suicide—she was murdered; it’s obvious, isn’t it?”
Watson says, “It isn’t obvious to me.” Sherlock says, “Amazing! What must it be like in your funny little brains? It must be so boring!”
He then explains that there are small splashes of mud on the back of her right ankle indicating that she must have been rolling a suitcase behind her. But because the case is missing, someone must have taken it. And therefore, she didn’t commit suicide—she was murdered.
Similarly, our passage from Mark 7, is a crime scene. At first glance, we might conclude that the culprits are the Pharisee who commit the crime of being legalistic hypocrites. But, as we look more closely at the evidence, we’ll realize that there is another more sinister culprit; one whose fingerprints are all over this scene. There’s even a smoking gun. This passage is a classic “Who-Done-It?” mystery story.
By carefully observing the evidence and looking at the clues, we’ll understand how the same culprit commits similar crimes in our own lives and what we can do about it.
Three questions: 1) What are the clues in this mystery? 2) Who commits the crime? 3) How does Jesus solve it?
What Are the Clues?
There are three.
First Clue: The Need to Criticize and Blame
In v.1-2: The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus and saw some of his disciples eating food (literally in the Greek: “bread”) with hands that were defiled, that is unwashed. And then, in v.5, they ask: Why [do] your disciples…[eat] their [bread] with defiled hands?
The Pharisees are a group of lay-leaders within Judaism. They’re goal was societal reform in Israel. They believed the sooner Israel cleaned up their act, the sooner God would deliver them from their oppressors.
Here’s what stands out: They’re appalled that the disciples are eating bread with defiled hands.
This is important because this entire section—Mark 6-8—is known as “The Bread Section.” The word bread is mentioned 17 times!
Earlier, in chapter 6, Jesus miraculously multiplies a few loaves of bread in order to feed over 5000 people. The Pharisees no doubt heard about this. Some scholars believe that they saw the disciples and the crowd eating bread, and this is the eating bread they are referring to. Whether they saw it or now, they undoubtedly heard about it.
But instead of seeing Jesus’ miracle with the bread through eyes of wonder and curiosity, they only see something to criticize.
Like a parent who looks at his son’s math test when he got a perfect score except for missing one problem. Instead of saying, “Great job!” The parent asks, “What did you do wrong on the problem you missed? Why did you get it wrong?”
It’s worth asking yourself if you show the same propensity. Are you inclined to view the people in your life with wonder and curiosity? Or are you quick to criticize, condemn and vilify? Where do you think that tendency comes from? That’s what this story is about.
Second Clue: The Need to Clea
June 6, 2021
Mark 6:45-52
Troubled Waters
Introduction:
This is the second time in the Gospel of Mark where we find the disciples struggling in a boat in the middle of a storm.
The image of a ship being tossed around the sea in a storm is a universal image. It shows up in famous paintings, well-known novels, and in popular movies. It also appears in multiple places throughout the Bible.
This image resonates with each of us because we know what it’s like to be tossed about by the storms of life.
The first episode happened in Mark 4. When I preached on that passage, I mentioned that this image is so potent that when the early Christians started building their first church buildings, they called the inside of the building where the people sit “the nave.” Nave comes from the same root word as Navy. It means ship. Christians saw themselves, as the church, as a ship tossed about by a storm.
It’s no wonder therefore that a story about the disciples in a boat on the sea appears twice in the Gospel of Mark.
Even so, both stories are different. In Mark 4 Jesus is sleeping in the boat when the storm hits. Here, Jesus is up on a mountain praying. In Mark 4, Jesus calms the storm by speaking to it. Here, Jesus calms the wind by his sheer presence.
In Mark 4, the storms is so violent, it threatens to capsize the ship. Here, the disciples encounter an extremely strong wind.
In today’s passage in Mark 6, I want to consider two points:
- The Futility of the Disciples
- The Face of God
The Futility of the Disciples
The context here is that Jesus has just sent the 12 disciples out on a mission trip to the surrounding villages to share the gospel. They come back and report all the amazing things God has done, but they’re exhausted. They need a break. On top of that, they got news that John the Baptist has been beheaded. They try to get away to rest and process, but a crowd follows them. The crowd is hungry so Jesus multiples a few loaves of bread to feed them. He has the disciples help out. They need a break. It’s time to get away.
Jesus has the disciple cross the Sea of Galilee in a boat while he spends some time praying on a mountain. He plans to meet them on the other side.
But instead of a time of relaxation and rest, the disciples trip ends up looking like an exercise in futility. There are 3 reasons why their trip makes them feel frustrated and futile.
- The disciples’ destination point:
In v.45 that Jesus dismisses the crowd, has the disciples get into a boat, and directs them to the town of Bethsaida. This is a small town at the very northern end of the Sea of Galilee. Destination point: Bethsaida.
But if we skip down to the very next passage and look at v.53, it says, When they had crossed over; they landed at Gennesaret. Gennesaret is a different village on the western shore. They do not arrive in the town they set out for. In fact, they don’t even arrive in the area they were shooting for!
They try to go where Jesus sends them and do what Jesus tells them. But the winds of a storm take them to a different place.
This is a picture of the times God calls you to a certain path. You obey. You follow. You even make sacrifices! But the winds of life—take you to a completely different destination than the one you set out for.
You try to follow Jesus, you marry a Christian spouse, and maybe it was a sacrifice because there were other non-Christian people who were viable options—and then you end up miserable in your marriage or it ends i
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, May 23, 2021 Mark 6:34-44
The Good, the Bad, the Hungry
Introduction:
The documentary The God the Bad the Hungry is about the champions who compete in the National Hotdog Eating Contest. The record is 72 hotdogs in 10 minutes. That’s over 7 hotdogs/minute. 12,000 calories and 16 lbs of food in 10 minutes. The goal for the contestants is to not only to eat as fast as they can, but to keep it down. (When Annmarie and I watch movies, usually she is the one who is sensitive and if there is an intense part, she has to turn away. I never have to do this. But I found myself having to turn away at points as I watched this documentary.) They just shovel it in at an unbelievable pace.
But as I watched, I thought to myself: In many ways, this is a picture of what I sometimes do spiritually. Approval? I gulp it down as quickly as possible. Security? I can’t get it in fast enough. Reaching certain measurements of success—I shovel it into my soul.
The Bible says that this is something that all of us do. We all possess a spiritual hunger. Sometimes we binge our souls on anything we think will fill them.
Scripture warns us that most of these indulgences still leave us famished and unfulfilled. The Call to Worships asks: Why spend your money on what is not bread and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen, listen to me and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. (Isa 55).
This story in Mark 6 is a story about hunger. It’s a story about bread. (In fact, Mark 6-8 is known as the “Bread Section” because the word bread is mentioned some 17 times.)
It’s for those who are hungry and what to satisfy their souls with the richest of fair.
I’ll just walk through the passage verse by verse.
Walk Through the Passage
Context: In the verses just prior to this story, the disciples are sent out by Jesus on a mission trip. They return and report to him everything that happened. As they give their missions report to Jesus, the people of Galilee start showing up en masse. It reminds me of the old scene in Rocky where he is training in the rough neighborhood of downtown Philadelphia—and more and more people start following him until a huge crowd forms. This scene is a lot like that. The people of Galilee are tough, hardnosed people. Life is hard and their hope is dwindling. They’re are hungry, but they’re not sure for what.
v.31 says, “…because so many people were coming and going…the disciples did not even have a chance to eat. The disciples are famished. The gathering crowd hasn’t eaten. The context then is that everyone is hungry!
Jesus then gets in a boat with the disciples for some downtime. This is where the story picks up.
34 When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.
Notice three things about this verse:
- 1) Jesus has compassion on them.
Throughout the Bible, one of God’s chief and most celebrated attributes is that of compassion. In Exodus 34 when Moses says to God, show me your glory! God says, The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness. (Ex 34:6-7).
This great crowd is hungry for the compassion of God, though they don’t now it yet. Jesus is the embodiment of that compassion.
- 2) Jesus likens the crowd to “sheep without a shepherd.”
This is an important phrase because throughout the Bible, kings and rulers are referred to as “shepherds.” Leaders were to l
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, May 2, 2021
Mark 6:14-29
If You Stand for Nothing, What’ll You Fall For?
Introduction:
On Tuesday mornings, the elders and deacons get together to pray for the church at 7AM. When we met last Tuesday, I was running late, so I didn’t have time to make my coffee. So after our prayer meeting, I decided to go to Starbucks on Main Street on my way back home.
I pulled into the drive-through…and there was a massive line of 15-20 cars! I figured it was worth the wait. I’ll just listen to a podcast. The line moved slowly, with each person taking around 2 minutes at the drive-through speaker. What were they ordering? I just like my coffee black. Were all these people ordering foo-foo drinks that take forever to prepare? Why was this taking so long?
Fifteen minutes later, I’m 1 car away from ordering. Behind me, the line was 15-20 cars. I watched the person in front of me and realized she wasn’t speaking to anyone over the speaker. She was just waiting.
I thought, “this doesn’t seem right.” I got out of my car and asked, “Have they taken your order yet?” She said, “No.” I walked around the side of the building to the pickup window…only to discover nobody was there! All the lights were off! The shop was closed!
Each person in that line waited 15 minutes; when they finally got to the speaker to order, they waited another 2 minutes. When they realized that nobody was going to take their order, they just drove off and it just kept repeating itself.
We were all just waiting forever in line for a big cup of nothing!
I went down the line and told everyone, “There is nothing at the end of this line.”
This passage asks the question: What line are you in with your life? What direction are you headed? What do you think will be at the end when you get there. And beware! Because it’s possible that the line you are in—the direction you are heading—is not going to give you the reward that you seek.
Walk Through the Passage
Three acts.
Act 1: v.14-16:
In the previous passage, Jesus sent out his 12 disciples to preach and heal. Word about this spreads as if people were Tweeting about it and posting it on Facebook. Act 1 describes what happens when Herod hears about Jesus. Two things stand out in Act 1:
- Mark refers to Herod as a King
In v.14 Mark writes, King Herod heard about this (about the preaching and healing of Jesus and his disciples). Herod is a ruler over the area of Galilee, but he is emphatically not a king. He wanted to be one. He even requested that the Emperor give him the title—and it led to him being dismissed and exiled.
Mark mockingly refers to Herod as “King Herod” as a reminder that Herod was waiting in line, living for something, that was never going to be delivered.
- Nobody seems to know what to make of Jesus.
As word spread about Jesus, people asked, “Who is this?” Some people thought he was Elijah from the OT returned. Others thought he was some kind of prophet. And finally, others, including Herod, believed that Jesus was John the Baptist raised from the dead.
This is a segue to Act 2 where we learn how it is the John the Baptist died.
Act 2: v.17-20
In this part of the story, we’re told that Herod had married his brother’s wife—a woman by the name of Herodias. John the Baptist called them out on this.
John the Baptist did this because Herod wanted people to think he was not only King of the Jews but also their Messiah. John is pointing out—I don’t think the Messiah would marry his brother’s wife. After all this is expressly forbidden in the OT (Lev 20:21).
As a result, Herod arrests John and puts him in prison
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, April 11, 2021
The Home Court Disadvantage
Introduction:
In the world of sports, it is always better for a team to play on their home court.
There are numerous reasons, for this: When teams play on their own home court,
they don’t get worn down by traveling to another town. They get to sleep in your own bed instead of losing sleep in a hotel. They don’t have to eat out—you get a home-cooked meal.
But most importantly, they play in a front of your hometown crowd: Family, friends, and people from the town who have come out to cheer for them. No wonder it’s called the home court advantage!
But imagine a team that played a home game only to discover that the fans were cheering for the visiting team and against their hometown! What if these fans booed their own team whenever they did something right?
How demoralizing would that be? How long could a player keep playing?
This is essentially what happens to Jesus in the passage.
He’s been traveling around with his disciples; teaching and performing miracles. And he’s been met with a lot of resistance. People have tried to kill him, run him out of town. But now he returns to his hometown. You’d think at least here he’d have the homecourt advantage! But instead of finding people cheering him on—he’s booed out of the stadium. Rejected.
This story confronts us with some of our own negative heart attitudes. But it also shows us how Jesus can transform those attitudes and our hearts.
Instead of doing a three point sermon, we’re just going to walk through this passage verse by verse.
v.1 Jesus left there and went to his hometown, accompanied by his disciples.
When it says Jesus went to his hometown, it’s referring to Nazareth.
Archeologists suggest that it was a small village of no more than 500 people. The size of small towns in Montana—like Belt or Big Sandy.
It’s earliest reference in history, outside of the Bible, is by some obscure writer 200 years after Christ’s birth.
All this suggests that Nazareth was an insignificant town.
It’s no wonder that when Jesus first calls his disciple Nathaniel in John 1:46, Nathaniel says, “Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
How can anything significant come from such an insignificant town?
v.2 When the Sabbath came, Jesus began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given him? What are these remarkable miracles he is performing?
There are certain teachers who, when then teach, you can tell that they have a special gifting. For example, John Piper preaches with an alluring passion; Paul Tripp teaches with humor, and then, all of a sudden, he cuts you to the heart; James KA Smith is extremely profound and articulate when he teaches. When you listen to people like that, you think, “This is amazing! I could listen to this for hours!”
This is how the people in Jesus’ hometown felt when they heard him teach in their place of worship, the synagogue. They thought, “Wow! I mean, really, wow!”
Jesus’ teaching was unlike anything they had ever heard.
They rightly ask: “Where did he get these things? Where does this wisdom come from?” In addition to his teaching, they had seen and heard about his miraculous healings. They rightly ask, “What is this about and where does this power come from?”
Those are all the right questions.
In Luke’s version of this story, he tells us that Jesus doesn’t keep them guessing. In Luke 4, Jesus reads an OT passage about the Messiah and then says, “Today this is fulfilled in your hearing.” In other words, “I am the Messiah this passage is talking
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, March 28, 2021
Palm Sunday
Introduction:
Since today is Palm Sunday we are skipping ahead in the book of Mark to the first Palm Sunday when Jesus rode into Jerusalem with crowds cheering and waving Palm branches.
This Sunday marks the beginning of what the church calls “Holy Week” or “Passion Week.” Holy Week commemorates the last week of Jesus’ life before Easter. It includes Jesus entering Jerusalem, clearing the temple, teaching the crowds and debating the religious leaders. Washing his disciples’ feet. Serving the Last Super. Praying in the Garden of Gethsemane. And finally, being arrested and crucified.
Our passage this morning is sometimes called “the Triumphal Entry.” It is chock-full of symbolism and OT prophecy being fulfilled.
We’ll consider the following two points as we look at this passage: * First, I’ll point out 4 ways that the Triumphal Entry fulfills Old Testament prophecy about the Messiah. * Second, I’ll propose two questions to ask yourself this Holy Week.
Four Ways the Triumphal Entry Fulfills Old Testament Prophecy About the Messiah
First, Entering Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives:
In v.1 it says, “They approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives…”
Bethpage and Bethany were small villages nestled at the bottom of the Mount of Olives. The Mount of Olives is a mountain about 2 miles outside of Jerusalem (which was known for its many olive trees).
The story points out that Jesus enters Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives because 500 years prior to this event, the prophet Zechariah (in the OT) wrote that there was a coming “Day of the Lord”: A day of Judgment and Salvation.
On that Day, the Lord would come to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives.
In Zechariah 14:4 it says, On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem.
By entering from Jerusalem, Jesus is fulfilling that prophecy and signifying that the Day of the Lord has arrived.
Second, Riding a donkey:
In v.2-6, Jesus asks his disciples to go fetch a colt that is tied up in the village ahead and bring it to him. This young, male, donkey has never been ridden before. In v.7 it says, “When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it.”
This event is significant for several reasons, which we will come back to. But what immediately stands out is that this event fulfills another prophecy from Zechariah.
Zechariah 9:9 says, “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
By riding into Jerusalem on a donkey, Jesus fulfills this ancient prophecy. Not only that, he’s making a statement about who he is: “Israel, I’m your King!”
It’s no wonder the people are throwing down their cloaks and palm branches. Today, we roll out the red carpet for heads of state and celebrities. In the ancient world, instead of rolling out the red carpet, they would throw down their cloaks and palm branches. It was an act of allegiance and reverence.
Third, Shouting God’s promise:
In v.9-10 the crowds shout, “Hosanna!” (Hosanna means, “God save us.”) “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David.”
Recently, Pastor Bryan preached a 3-part sermon series on 2 Samuel 7, where God makes a promise to King David. He says, from your offspring, I will raise up King who will sit on the throne and rule the nations forever. The crowd remembers that prophecy, that promise. By saying “Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David” they are saying, “Jesus is our promised King!”
And finally, fourth, Arriving at the temple.
In v.11 it says, “Jes
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, March 7, 2021
Two Daughters, Twelve Years, and One Faith
Introduction:
My wife, Annmarie, shared an article with me recently. The author of the article, Tony Reinke, was on vacation in Norther Minnesota with his family. They rented a cabin along the shoreline of Lake Superior. One day, they went for a hike and found this beautiful waterfall flowing over a 25-foot cliff into a deep pool of water. Their 15-year old son immediately asked, “Can I jump off that cliff into the pool?” Both parents said, “No, you don’t know if there are boulders in the pool—you could break your neck!” So, they just sat enjoying the view. Then, 3 guys appeared at the top of the cliff in their shorts. One by one they jumped off the cliff into the pool. They climbed back up and did it again. The 15-year old son looked at his parents: “Now that we know that there aren’t any boulders and it’s safe—can I jump?”
The dad, seeing this as a parenting opportunity, said, “Tell you what. You can jump off the 25-foot cliff under one condition: We are not going to video it. Not on my phone. Not on your mom’s phone. Not on your phone. You won’t be able to share it on social media. I want you to experience the thrill of jumping when it’s just you and the cliff—nothing else.”
On this condition, the boy threw up his arms and said, Well, then, what’s the point?!
The authors point is that so much of what we do and don’t do today is done with an audience in mind. What will people think of me?
In this story, we have two people—a synagogue ruler and a suffering woman—who are both are brought to a moment when nothing else matters. It’s just them and Jesus. You are invited to experience the thrill of putting your faith in Jesus when it’s just him and nothing else.
Two points: 1) How are these two characters alike? 2) How does their encounter with Jesus change them forever?
How are these two characters alike?
The story begins with Jairus—the synagogue ruler—begging Jesus to heal his dying daughter. Jesus agrees, but is interrupted by this woman who is suffering. The story then concludes with Jesus healing Jairus’s daughter. The story of the woman is wrapped inside of the story about Jairus. The message of this story is seen when we compare and contrast these two people.
At first glance, these two people couldn’t be more different.
Jairus is a man, he’s a synagogue ruler—which means he’s respected as a religious and upright person, and we later learn that he has a large household suggesting that he is a man of means.
The woman on the other hand, is a female, she’s not given a name, and she suffers from some form of hemorrhaging (though we don’t know exactly what). V.26 says she had spent all her money on doctors. She is financially destitute. Further, according to OT law, anyone who suffers a discharge of blood is considered ceremonially unclean. She can’t touch people. She can’t enter the temple or even attend Jairus’s synagogue. She is like a leper. A social outcast.
These two people couldn’t be more different. And yet, they are bound by a certain commonality.
The passage gives us a hint that we are to see these two people in the same place: In v.25 it says that the woman has been subject to bleeding for twelve years. Then, in v.42, we’re told that Jairus’s daughter is 12-years old. In other words, Jairus’s daughter was born the same year that this woman’s chronic illness began.
In some mysterious way, their fates are intertwined. Their lives now intersect as they find themselves on the same day in the same crowd coming to Jesus, both in the same place spiritually.
But they are most similar in the following two ways:
- They both have faith.
Think about what J
Sun, Feb 21, 2021
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling Mark 5:1-20
Where My Demons Hide, Part 2
Introduction:
In 2009, a journalist by the name of Matt Baglio, wrote a book called, The Rite: The Making of a Modern Exoricist.
Matt was working as a journalist in Rome when he read that the Vatican was offering training classes in exorcism for Catholic priests. He thought: “What? How can this even be a thing in the 21st Century?” He ended up attending the classes and following a priest on his training and writing a book about it. He was surprised by two things:
- He saw some crazy stuff! People who possessed preternatural strength and had knowledge of hidden things. They could speak languages they never learned. People speaking in unnatural voices, saying things like: “This person belongs to us. He spoke with honest priests who told stories of seeing demon possessed people levitate.
Matt had long ago given up the faith of his childhood. But when he came face to face with some of these encounters, he reaffirmed his faith.
- The Catholic Church believes that demon possession is exceedingly rare. Anyone who came to the church suspecting demon possession was first referred to a mental health expert. And even then, over 90% of the cases were determined as not being demonic.
I think that these two points are helpful as we approach this passage about demon possession. On the one hand, there are trustworthy accounts that defy scientific explanation. In light of this, skeptics of Christianity should approach this passage with an open mind.
On the other hand, accounts like this are exceedingly rare. This passage is not meant for you to focus on demon possession and exorcisms per se.
Instead, it’s intended to show you that you are not as different from this man as you might think.
Look at: 1) The demon-possessed man’s brokenness. 2) The demon-possessed man’s redemption.
The Demon-Possessed Man’s Brokenness
V1. Tells us that Jesus and his disciples leave the area of Israel and travel across the lake of Galilee to a region called Gerasenes.
Everything about this place reeks of death and evil and impurity. And for the Jew—who kept strict purity regulations—everything about this scene reeks of unclean.
- It’s in a Gentile region outside of Israel’s holy land—for the Jews, Gentile regions were unclean.
- The man is filled with an unclean spirit.
- He lives among dead corpses (considered unclean by Jews).
- There’s a massive herd of pigs nearby. (also considered unclean by the Jews).
And yet, Jesus enters into this dark, oppressive, unclean place because he comes to make his blessings known as far as the curse is found.
In v.2-5, no sooner than Jesus gets out of the boat, a demon possesses man approaches him.
It’s apparent that this man has been assaulted by evil. It’s worth looking at all the ways evil has assaulted him, because it’s an exercise in compassion. Moreover, it shows us what evil intends to do to each of us.
- He’s been relegated to the realm of the dead
v.5 says he lives among the tombs. But v.3 says he lives in the tombs—the caves where people buried their dead. His home is the grave. His companions are corpses. He reeks of death.
He is a picture of Israel in the Old Testament—exiled and living in a valley of dry bones.
Also, he’s a picture of where our sinful desires want to lead us. You may not be possessed by demons. But you know what it is t
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, February 7, 2021 Mark 5:1-20
Where My Demons Hide
Introduction:
This is one of the more puzzling passages in the NT; it leaves us scratching our heads with multiple questions. For example:
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What were the events in this man’s life that led him to become demon possessed and live out such a miserable life?
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We never learn this man’s name. Why is it that Jesus asks the demon what his name is, but he doesn’t ask the man what his name is?
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The passage indicates that the demon possessed man is filled with thousands of demons. Why so many demons in one man?
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And of course, perhaps the biggest question is: What’s with the pigs? We all grew up loving the cute little pigs in our stories: Wilber, Piglet, Miss Piggy, Porky Pig, Babe, and the piggy who went to the market. But here, all those pigs and 2000 more crash into the sea and die! What’s going on with the pigs?
Hopefully, we will answer most, if not all, of these questions.
This will be a two-part sermon series:
Today, in Part 1, we will look at this story from the political perspective. This is a story about politics, government, and the kingdom of God. (Big picture—we won’t cover all the details of the passage in this first sermon)
And then in Part 2, we will look at this passage from the personal perspective. We’ll see that this story is about God’s relentless pursuit to bring healing to your brokenness.
Two Questions:
- How is this story about politics?
- What are the implications for today?
How is this story about politics?
What if, I told you a contemporary version of this story? For example:
Jesus arrived in Washington DC and walked over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. As soon as he arrived, a naked, homeless vet approached him and yelled at Jesus. He was demon possessed and these demons tortured him. Jesus asked the demon his name and he said, “My name is ‘Military Industrial Complex’—for we are powerful.” Nearby was a heard of elephants and donkeys, and Jesus cast the demon into them. The herd was then taken to Guantanamo Bay Detention camp where they perished.
You might not understand it all. But you’d have a good idea that there are some strong political undertones.
Christians in the first century were similarly aware that this story is making a political statement.
How do we know that? Here are four clues:
The Region: In v.1 we’re told that this story takes place in the region of the Gerasenes. This region was on the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire which meant that it was filled with multiple military outposts.
Also, it was populated by retired Roman soldiers who were given land here as payment for their service.
The point is: This region had a strong association with the Roman military.
The Demon Possessed Man In v.2-5 a man who is possessed by an impure spirit rushes out to meet Jesus. Both the people and the demons in this area have brutalized, bound, and oppressed him.
In v.9, Jesus asks the demon his name. The demon(s) replies: “My name is Legion for we are many.” There are multiple demons taking residence in this man.
What’s significant is that they use the name “Legion.” Why Legion? He could have said my name is multifarious, or numerous, or millennia.
But he doesn’t. He says, “My name is Legion.” Why that name?
Because “Le
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
January 24, 2021
Mark 4:35-41
While You Were Sleeping
Introduction:
The image of a ship being tossed about in a storm is a universal, evocative one. It appears across the board in literature, in paintings, in movies, and in multiple places in the Bible.
In fact, when the early Christians started building their own church buildings, they called the inside of the building where people sit “the nave.” “Nave” comes from the same root word as “navy.” It means ship. Christians saw the church as a ship on the sea tossed about by a storm.
Because this passage is loaded with application and gospel imagery, I want to just walk through it one verse at a time, so we don’t miss any of the nuances. I will read a verse, explain it, and then move on to the next.
Begin with v35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.”
Earlier in the chapter, Jesus was teaching a large crowd on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. He now wants to cross over the eastern side. This is a non-Jewish region, an area where Gentiles lived.
Crossing the Sea of Galilee was a bit risky at times. While it was only 7 miles wide, it was known for its sudden, violent storms.
Just to the north was Mount Hermon—9200 ft high. The Sea of Galilee was 700 ft below sea level. The cool winds from the mountain would clash with the warm air above the sea and cause impressive thunderstorms and squalls.
Jesus’ desire to cross over to the eastern side of the Sea, is a reminder that Jesus has come not just for Israel and the Jews—but for the whole world. Jews and Gentiles.
Next: v36: Leaving the crowd behind, [the disciples] took [Jesus] along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.
Jesus had been teaching on the shore from a boat. This provided a buffer so that he wasn’t crushed by the crowds. But now that it was time to go, the disciples hopped in and began taking Jesus to the other side.
What’s striking about this verse is that it includes a detail that’s really not important to the rest of the story. It mentions, “There were also other boats with him.” We don’t hear about these boats again. We aren’t told what happens to them. The mention of these boats is an incidental detail—a nonessential part of the story.
Scholars of ancient literature calls details like this “irrelevant details.”
So what? Why’s this important? Because these same scholars point out that when ancient writers were making up legends—fictional stories—they NEVER included irrelevant details.
Today, authors of fiction do this all the time in order to make the story seem more realistic. But authors NEVER included irrelevant details in the ancient world if they were fabricating a story. They only used these kinds of details in true, eye-witness accounts.
This fact, that this passage includes the verse, “There were also other boats with him”, is an indication that this is NOT a made-up legend. It’s the mark of a real, historical, eye-witness account: We are reading about an event that actually happened.
37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.
For the Jews, the sea symbolized the evil that stands to undo creation.
In Genesis 1, the Bible begins by telling us that there was nothing but darkness over the surface of deep waters. This is a symbol of unorganized, unhabitable, chaotic forces. The whole point of Genesis 1 is that God overcomes these forces.
Or again, in the book of Daniel—Daniel has a dream where 4 destructive beasts
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
January 3, 2021
Mark 4:21-34
More than Meets the Eye
Introduction:
In the 1980s, the toy action figures called transformers came out. Transformers are cars and trucks. They are perfect for fighting evil aliens because the aliens look at them and just see a harmless vehicle. But when the alien least expects it, the car or truck unfolds into a dangerous robot with missiles and guns. Now the aliens don’t stand a chance! The theme song for the Transformers cartoon was, “Transformers, more than meets the eye.”
The parables of Jesus operate in a similar way. They start out as a simple, harmless story. But suddenly, when you least expect it, the parable transforms into a dangerous story about reality, about yourself, and the God you were trying to avoid. There is always more going on than meets the eye in a parable.
Eugene Peterson describes Jesus’ parables in a similar fashion. He writes: Parables sound absolutely ordinary: casual stories about soil and seeds, meals and coins and sheep…. As people heard Jesus tell these stories, they saw at once that they weren’t about God, so there was nothing in them threatening their own sovereignty. They relaxed their defenses. They walked away perplexed, wondering what they meant…. And then, like a time bomb, they would explode in their unprotected hearts. He was talking about God; they had been invaded!
There really is more going on than meets the eye.
In this passage in Mark 4, we will look at the following three parables:
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- The parable of the lamp.
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- The parable of the growing seed.
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- The parable of the mustard seed.
Each one tells us something about who Jesus is and what he desires to accomplish in his mission.
The Parable of the Lamp
In v.21-22, Jesus says, Do you bring a lamp to put it under a bowl or a bed? Instead, don’t you put it on its stand? For whatever is hidden is meant to be disclosed, and whatever is concealed is meant to be brought out into the open.
At first glance, it seems like Jesus is talking to the disciples about the importance of letting their light shine. He’s saying, Don’t be afraid to share the good news about the gospel. Don’t be ashamed. Instead, be bold and courageous. Let people know you are my follower, let your light shine and share the gospel.
That’s true. And the Bible does tell us to let our light shine and to not be ashamed of the gospel.
But Jesus is saying something more than that.
He’s explaining that there is an intrinsic “hiddenness” to the gospel. There are times when we can’t see its light. It’s like God is hiding its light from us and we might assume that it will stay that way. God wants us to trust that he will reveal its splendor and glory in due time.
In what sense is the gospel hidden? Two ways: 1) Jesus’ ministry and 2) In our own lives.
- In Jesus’ ministry
Throughout the book of Mark, Jesus cloaks much of his ministry in secrecy.
- Mark 1:25: When a demon announces that he is the “Holy One of God,” Jesus tells him to be quiet
- Mark 1:44: When Jesus heals a man with leprosy, he tells them not to tell anyone.
- Mark 1:45: Jesus stays out of the major population centers and spends most of his time in isolation in the countryside
- Mark 4:11-12 We’re told that when he does speak to large crowds, he does so very cryptically—using parables to code his message (Mark 4:11-12).
- Mark 9:9 When some
December 13, 2020
Mark 4:1-20
A Riddle, Wrapped in a Mystery, Inside an Enigma
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling Introduction:
Many of you have favorite Christmas movies you enjoy watching in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Perhaps one of the most popular is the 1983 movie, A Christmas Story, where the main character, Ralph, fanaticizes about getting a Red Ryder air rifle.
In one iconic scene, Ralph receives a “secret decoder ring” in the mail. One side of the rings has numbers on it; the other side has letters. At the end of his favorite radio program, a secret code is given. He now gets to use his new ring to decipher the code.
He writes down the code, runs excitedly into the bathroom for privacy, and, with sweaty hands, he quickly deciphers the secret code. To his dismay, the message reads, “Drink Your Ovaltine.” He can’t believe that his entire mission ends up being a crummy commercial!
Today’s passage in mark is about a parable: the parable of the sower. In many ways, it is a secret code. A mysterious message with a hidden meaning.
I want to show you how Jesus, in this passage, gives us the decoder ring to understand the parable. And the message of the parable, far from being a crummy commercial, contains the secret to living an abundant life.
Two questions:
- • What is a parable?
- • What is the message of this parable?
What is a parable?
Here are three things you need to know about parables:
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- Parables are stories with a hidden message.
Some define a parable as “an earthly story with a heavenly meaning.” This definition indicates that parables teach complex spiritual truths that are difficult to grasp and so Jesus uses illustrations from everyday life to help us better understand.
But that’s not completely true. Instead of calling a parable, “an earthly story with a heavenly meaning,” a better definition is that parables are “earthly stories with a hidden meaning.”
In other words, one of the primary purposes of a parable is to give a message in secret code. A parable is a riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.
This is why in v.10, after Jesus tells the parable of the sower, the disciples and the crowd have no idea what in the word he’s talking about.
Let me share with you a helpful analogy.
Stanley Kubric is considered by some to be one of the most brilliant and greatest filmmakers in history. His films include, Spartacus, 2001: A Space Odessy, The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, and many more.
One of the things Kubric is known for, especially in his later films, is his ability to tell two stories in one movie. One story is obvious and immediately accessible to everyone watching. But underneath that story, he would simultaneously tell another secret, subversive narrative through symbols and unnoticed dialogue. People watch his movies again and again, looking for hidden clues. There are endless documentaries, essays, and YouTube posts pointing out the hidden messages in some of his films. Once you see the hidden message, you think, “That’s so brilliant and amazing—how did I not notice it at first?”
Parables work the same way. There is an apparent, accessible, and obvious story, but underneath that story is an encoded, secret message.
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- Parables reveal Jesus’ message to some people and conceal Jesus’ message to other people.
The disciples and some others from the crowd hear the story of a farmer sowing seed. And they have no idea what he’s talking abou
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, November 29, 2020
Mark 3:20-35
Accused
Introduction:
In 1984, President Ronald Reagan was running for a second term as president. He ran against Walter Mondale.
Reagan was 73 years old—the oldest person to ever hold the office of President in American history. Walter Mondale was only 47 years old.
During the election campaign, Reagan’s age became a major issue. In the first presidential debate with Mondale, Reagan displayed signs of cognitive decline. He couldn’t finish sentences. He lost his train of thought. He wasn’t very articulate.
Mondale was quite confident at his shot of winning the Presidency after that first debate,
Then came the night of the second debate. The moderator asked the following question to Reagan: “You are already the oldest president in history. And some of your staff say you were tired after your most recent debate with Mr. Mondale. I recall that President Kennedy had to go days on end with very little sleep during the Cuban Missile crisis. Is there any doubt in your mind that you would be able to function in such circumstances?”
Reagan responded: “Not at all. And I want you to know that also I will not make age an issue in this campaign. I am not going to exploit for political purposes my opponent’s youth and inexperience.” The audience exploded with laughter. Mondale himself couldn’t help laughing. In fact, later he would admit that he knew that in that moment he had lost the Presidency. Reagan would go on to win in a landslide—winning 49 states.
Reagan took an attack and turned it into something winsome and compelling. People were attracted to him because of the way he responded to an accusation.
What if Christians could do that? What if Christians could take accusations and criticism about Christianity and respond in a way that is winsome, compelling, and attractive?
That’s what Jesus does in this passage: Ask: What Jesus is accused of? How does he respond?
What is Jesus accused of?
There are two accusations or criticisms raised against Jesus.
First, in v.21 his family accuse him of being out of his mind. Attracted crowds, hanging out with fringe people, coming under attack from the religious leaders, so busy he doesn’t even have time to eat.
In the Bible, being out of your mind is often associated with demon possession.
This is connected to the second accusation levied against Jesus. In v.22 teachers of the law from Jerusalem accuse him. They are not local figures; these are the big guns from Jerusalem. They accuse Jesus of being possessed by Beelzebul or Satan. They are saying that the only way Jesus performs healing and casts out demons is because he’s possessed by Satan.
There is a principle known as Godwin’s Rule. It states: As a discussion on social media grows longer, the probability increases that that someone will be compared to Hitler. Why? Because you can easily dismiss your opponent if you can associate them with someone evil.
This is what the religious leaders are doing to Jesus.
It’s important to recognize this because it also sometimes happens to Christians.
Carl Trueman, seminary professor: You kid yourselves if you think you can be a Christian and be at the same time cool enough and hip enough to cut it in the wider world. Frankly, in a couple of years it will not matter how [many tattoos] you sport, how much fair trade coffee you drink, how many craft brews you can name…or how much money you give for social justice: maintaining biblical sexual ethics will be the equivalent in our culture of being a white supremacist.
What’s he saying? If you hold to a traditional, Christian view of marriage, gender, or sex—you’ll be accused of being a bigot. O
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, November 15, 2020
November 15, 2020
Mark 3:13-19
Sacred Calling
Introduction:
I’ve always been fascinated by stories where some obscure, no-name person stumbles on to a great idea and then it catches fire and changes the world. For example,
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The Beatles played for the first time in 1960, in a dingy, obscure outlet in the red-light district of Hamburg, Germany. Hardly anybody was listening. But they found their unique sound. And went on to sell more albums than any artist to date in history.
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Steve Jobs was a 20-year old college drop out working out of his parents garage when he and Steve Wozniak founded Apple. In 2018, Apple became the first company to be valued at 1 trillion dollars. The world has never been the same.
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In 1990, JK Rowling was a single mom on welfare. She was sitting on a train headed to London when she got the idea of a boy named Harry Potter. It is one of the top best-selling books of all time having sold more than 500 million copies.
Sometimes a seemingly insignificant moment sparks a movement that changes the world. That’s what today’s passage is about: A no-name rabbi, in the first century, in the middle of nowhere calls 12 people nobody ever heard of to follow him. A humble beginning. A seemingly insignificant moment. And it would change the world forever.
How does this kind of thing happen. What would it look like for you to be a part of something that changes the world? This passage invites us to follow the disciples and to take the three following steps.
First, Recognize your desire
Second, Discover the object of your desire
Third, Participate in a transformational community
Recognize Your Desire
v.13 Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him.
Notice the symbolism of where Jesus calls his disciples: “Up on a mountainside.”
In the ancient world, mountains were considered holy places. Sacred places close to the gods.
In the Bible, Moses met God on Mount Sinai. Elijah calls down fire from the mountain top of Mount Carmel. Later in the Gospels—Jesus is revealed in all his glory on a mountain—known as the Mount of Transfiguration. Most importantly, in the OT, the Garden of Eden is up on a mountain. This is the place where God dwells with his people.
Being summoned to the mountain is a symbol of being called back home. Back to the Garden of Eden. To the place where things are the way they are supposed to be.
Today, mountains continue to be places that beckon us. We want to live near them. We want to hike in them and climb them.
Last year a documentary called Free Solo won and Academy Award. It’s about American rock climber Alex Honnold and how he climbed El Capitan—a 3000 ft rock formation in Yosemite National Park. He is the only person in history to climb it without using any ropes. For over a year, he organized his entire life around this one, singular pursuit. He risked his life. Why? In the documentary his mother is interviewed and asked, “Why does he do it?” She said, “When he’s climbing, he feels the most alive, the most everything.”
You might not be interested in climbing El Capitan without ropes, but we all familiar with that desire to feel “the most alive, the most everything.”
But the mountain climber is never satisfied with just one summit. They have an insatiable desire to keep climbing the next mountain. Why is that?
Steve DeWitt in his book, Eyes Wide Open writes: What we desire is never found in the wonderland of creation. We keep looking and longing for the beauty behind the beauty, the one who will
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Mark 3:7-12
Sunday, October 25, 2020 What it Looks Like to Build the Kingdom Introduction: In the 90s, I was a big fan of the television show Seinfeld. One of my favorite episodes is when Kramer gets a job. He and George are downtown, and Kramer needs to go to the bathroom. Instead of using a public restroom, George encourages Kramer to use the bathroom in a nearby office building. Kramer agrees. When he comes out, a bunch of office workers are headed to a conference meeting and they think Kramer works there since he’s using the bathroom. They tell him to hurry up and come to the meeting. Now that all the workers think Kramer works there, he decides to keep showing up for work every day. He rides the subway, shows up at the office, hangs out at the water cooler, sits at a desk and eats crackers, and after work, he joins the employees for happy hour drinks.
Kramer talks the talk. Wears a suit. Carries a briefcase. Goes through the motions. But he has no clue what it means to work at this job.
Finally, the boss Mr. Leland calls Kramer into his office: “Kramer, I've been reviewing your work. Quite frankly, it stinks.”
Kramer responds: “Well, I’ve been havin' trouble at home and, you know, I'll work harder, nights, weekends, whatever it takes.”
Leland says, “No, no, I don't think that's going to, do it. These reports you handed in. It's almost as if you have no business training at all. I'm sorry. There's just no way we can keep you on.”
Kramer says, “But I don't even really work here!”
To which the boss replies, “That’s what makes this so difficult!”
I share that story because I think a lot of Christians are doing something similar to Kramer. Somehow, they just got whisked away into Christianity. They go through some of the motions. They talk the talk. But they have no clue as to what it means to be a Christian. To be engaged in building the kingdom of God.
Mark 3:7-12 shows us what it looks like. We’ll ask 2 questions:
- • What does it look like for Jesus to build the kingdom?
- • What does it look like for you to build the kingdom?
What does it look like for Jesus to build the kingdom? 1. Jesus brings people to himself from a place a disadvantage. In v.7 it says: Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake.
Jesus withdraws with his disciples to the countryside along the lake because in the previous section, the Pharisees formed a plan to murder Jesus. He must remain incognito—away from the city centers where most the people are.
This is major disadvantage for Jesus. He wants to tell people about the kingdom of God, but he’s forced to inhabit places where there aren’t very many people.
Today, if you want to get a message out. You need a large social media platform: YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, a podcast, Facebook followers. If somehow, you get cancelled and your platform is taken away—you’re at a massive disadvantage!
This is essentially what happens to Jesus. His platform is taken away. He has no way to get his message out.
And yet, notice what happens: In v.7-8: Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed him. When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon.
The places listed here are Jewish and Gentile regions. One Bible scholar describes these verses this way: “The reader of the Gospel begins to get the impression that the whole world is coming to Jesus.”
In other words, the kingdom of God is not hindered in the face of disadvantage.
Healing Withered Hands and Withered Hearts (Mark 2:23-3:6)
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling October 11, 2020
Mark 2:23-3:6
Healing Withered Hands and Withered Hearts
Introduction:
Several years ago, two psychologists did an interesting study on seminary students.
They told a group of seminary students to prepare a sermon on the parable of the Good Samaritan—Jesus’ parable about people who passed by a man who was robbed and beaten on the road.
Once the sermons were ready, the researchers told half the students that there were running late and needed to hurry to the chapel to give their message. To the other half, they said, you have some extra time, but you better head over the chapel early to give your message.
The researchers had placed a man who pretended to be hurt on the pathway to the chapel. When the students encountered him—he was hunched over, and he would moan and cough and act distressed.
Here’s what happened: 60% of the students didn’t offer to help the man in any way—as they walked to the chapel to give a sermon on the Good Samaritan. Many of the students literally stepped over him on the path in order to get to the chapel.
The researchers discovered 2 things: 1) The students determined that the instructions of the researchers, “the rule” about going to the chapel now—was more important that giving mercy. 2) The students who left chapel early—and who were therefore not in a hurry—were 6 Xs more likely to stop and help.
Each of us struggles with the hinderances (following the rules and being in and hurry in some way or another. We lose sight of a relationship with God because we are overly focused on the rules and making sure we check the boxes. And we are living our lives at a frantic pace—and not slowing down to rest.
Each of these hindrances is addressed in our passage this morning. There are two stories in this passage. And so my brilliant outline is this: Story #1 and Story #2.
Story #1
In the first story—in v.23—we are told that it’s the Sabbath. Meaning it was supposed to be a day of rest for Jewish people and NO work was to be done.
Jesus and his disciples walk through a grainfield and pick some grain and eat it.
In v.24 the Pharisees protest. Even through the OT doesn’t forbid picking some grain on the Sabbath, according to their rules—it’s work! And you’re not supposed to work on the Sabbath.
Jesus—because he is a good pastor—answers by making three points. Let me point out his three responses:
- Jesus Claims to be the Greater David.
In v.25-26 Jesus recounts the story in 1 Samuel in the OT where David and his men are running for their lives from Saul. They come to the tabernacle and ask the priest for something to eat. The only thing on hand is the holy bread (called the showbread). Only priests are allowed to eat it. But the priest gives it to David and his men because they’re hungry. And because David is God’s anointed King.
Why does Jesus tell this story?
He’s comparing himself to David. David was anointed as King, but not yet on the throne. Jesus was anointed in his baptism, and he’s not yet on the throne.
And if David, Israel’s King, could eat unauthorized bread, how much more should Jesus be allowed to eat “unauthorized” grain! Jesus is the True King. The Greater David.
- Jesus Claims that God is a Generous Giver
Then, in v.27, Jesus says, “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.”
In other words: the Sabbath was created to serve people. People were not created to serve the Sabbath as if they were slaves.
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, August 16, 2020 Mark 2:1-12
Through the Roof: Evangelism, Part 2
Introduction:
This is part 2 of a 2-part sermon series on this passage.
In part 1, I made the case that this story about 4 men bringing a paralyzed person to Jesus is in many ways a picture of evangelism.
When Jesus heals someone with a physical ailment or disease it’s often a picture of our spiritual condition. When Jesus heals the blind—it’s a picture of how we are all spiritually blind and can’t see God apart from his grace. When Jesus raises the dead—it’s a picture of how we are all spiritually dead apart from his life-giving mercy. And here, when Jesus heals a paralyzed man—it’s a picture of how we are all paralyzed and unable to come to God on our own. We need others to bring us to Jesus. In this sense, these 4 men are evangelists. They are bringing someone to Jesus.
Last week, I mentioned 3 reasons why we are reluctant to share our faith and tell non-Christians about Jesus.
Today, I want to address the cultural challenges to sharing the Christian gospel today.
What are the cultural challenges of sharing your faith? Let me list 3:
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- Our culture is becoming increasingly secular.
When I say ‘secular,’ I don’t mean atheistic. I mean it’s more difficult to believe in Christianity today.
For example, 500 years ago in Europe, in was almost impossible to NOT believe in God. The culture was highly Christian, highly religious, and everyone you knew shared a similar belief. It was pretty much impossible to imagine life apart from God. But today, in the West, it’s different. Today, there are many people who are content completely apart from God. There are people who don’t know any Christians. And if you are a Christian, you know people who don’t share your beliefs. For many people, this makes it more difficult to be a Christian.
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- There is little to no anxiety about sin or the afterlife.
For example, 50 years ago—the way to share the gospel was to ask 2 questions:
1) Have you come to a point in your life where if you were to die, you know for sure you are going to heaven?
2) What would you say if you were to stand before God and he asked, “Why should I let you into my heaven.”
People would say, Yeah I think I’ll go to heaven. Or I don’t know if I’m good enough. But now, people say, I don’t believe in heaven or your version of God. Further, there is no concept or understanding of sin—or being good enough. Not only do people today give different answers. They simply don’t agree with the questions.
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- Increasingly, people say, “I’m spiritual, but I’m not religious.”
When people say, “I’m spiritual” it means there are open to transcendence or some higher power. When they say “I’m not religious,” they mean that they don’t want to associate with any one religion or with the church.
Surprisingly Montana has one of the lowest percentages of people who identify with a church. Utah has the highest percentage of people who identify with a church—almost 70%! Montana ranks 40th!—with only about 37% of people who affiliate themselves with a church. In Bozeman specifically, Almost 70% of the Bozeman population doesn’t identify with any church.
In light of these cultural challenges, I want to show how this passage guides us. Specifically, it encourages us to: 1) Embody the gospel. 2) Trust God’s Power. 3) Speak to the Heart.
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- Embody the Gospel
In v.1-2 we are told that Jesus is pr
Preached by Pastor Jeff Hamling
Sunday, August 9, 2020
August 9, 2020
Mark 2:1-12
Through the Roof (Part 1)
Introduction:
Today, only about 19% of U.S. Christians proactively look for opportunities to share their faith with non-Christians in their life.
While there are many reasons for this, I want to share with you three of the major reasons why Christians are reluctant to share their faith with an unbeliever.
- I don’t see the need.
A Lifeway Research Study found that about half the people who regularly attend an evangelical church stated that they think people can find eternal life through other religions and spirituality. Why share the gospel if people can find eternal life apart from Christ?
- I feel inadequate.
Christianity Today recently reported that because of the rise of atheism and thoughtful skepticism, many Christians don’t feel like they can respond in an intelligent way to an unbeliever’s questions.
- I’ve tried sharing the gospel and it didn’t work
The Christian organization 9 Marks states that many Christians read a book about evangelism or heard a sermon about it—then tried it and didn’t see any results.
*I’m doing a two-part sermon series on this passage. This morning, I want to consider each of these 3 objections to sharing the gospel and show how this story is meant to encourage us.
- I Don’t See the Need.
The story begins in v.1-2 where Jesus is teaching in a house. The house is packed with people listening to Jesus—standing room only. V.2 tells us that there’s NOT even room to stand outside the house since a crowd has gathered in front of the door to listen.
Then in v.3 we’re told that 4 men carry a paralyzed man—attempting to bring him to Jesus.
It’s important to pause and consider what exactly this picture represents. Often when the Gospels tell us about Jesus healing someone—YES, it’s meant to show how Jesus cares about our physical needs. BUT it also conveys a theological message. A spiritual message.
For example, * When Jesus heals those who are blind. It’s meant to be a picture of how we are all blind to spiritual things—but God in his grace opens our eyes and gives us faith to believe in him. * When Jesus raises a dead person, it’s a picture of how we are spiritually dead—but God makes us alive and raises us from the dead.
In a similar way, this story about 4 men bringing a paralyzed man to Jesus is a picture of someone who is unable to obtain eternal life on his own. He is in need and incapable.
New Testament scholar Mary Healy writes: If a paralyzed man is an image of someone who cannot help himself—who needs the help of others to carry out some of the basic tasks of life—then all human beings are paralyzed in relation to God! None of us can approach God with self-sufficiency, relying on our own strength alone. All have been incapacitated in one way or another by sin and need the faith of others to “carry” us to Jesus.
How can we say we DON’T see the need to share our faith? When the Bible clearly teaches, apart from Jesus, we are all blind. We are all dead. We are all paralyzed. This story confirms that we are all in need of Christ.
- I feel inadequate—there are people better suited to share the gospel than me. ///
If the paralyzed man in this story represents someone in need of Jesus, then it seems appropriate to think of the men who bring him to Jesus as representing evangelists.
v.3 says: Some men came, br