Category: Sharing The Gospel

Faith Comes by Hearing

3/8/2021

Text: Mark 1:40-45 40 And a man with leprosy came to Jesus, imploring Him and kneeling down, and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.” 41 Moved with compassion, Jesus reached out with His hand and touched him, and said to him, “I am willing; be cleansed.” 42 And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was cleansed. 43 And He sternly warned him and immediately sent him away, 44 and He said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.” 45 But he went out and began to proclaim it freely and to spread the news around, to such an extent that Jesus could no longer publicly enter a city, but stayed out in unpopulated areas; and they were coming to Him from everywhere.

Questions to Consider:

1. How did this man know that Jesus had the power to heal him?

2. How has Jesus made you clean in your life? Share below for others to be encouraged.

3. How have you been a conduit for healing to others?

40 And a man with leprosy came to Jesus, imploring Him and kneeling down, and saying to Him, “If You are willing, You can make me clean.”

As soon as Jesus enters this new region and goes to the synagogue to start preaching, a man with leprosy immediately comes to Jesus for healing. I wants us to notice the faith that this man had. He comes to Jesus already knowing that He had the power and authority to heal him completely; but adds the phrase: "If You are willing." This is a man, who by Jewish law was an outcast because of the extremely contagious condition of leprosy that he possessed. Yet, he found acceptance instead of rejection from Jesus.
How did this man know that he could be healed by Jesus? I'm sure there were other people during this time who suspected or hoped that Jesus could help their conditions; but this man comes to Jesus and says "You can make me clean." What made him so sure of this? How did he have this type of faith when he had literally just come into contact with Jesus? Let's make the question personal-- how did you know that Jesus could make you clean? It came the same way that it has come to everyone through out time; through the hearing of the word of Christ.
Romans 10:17 tells us: So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
The news of Jesus had spread all around the regions and cities. The news that this Man named Jesus was healing the sick, casting out demons and performing signs that were unexplainable. So whenever Jesus came to this region of Galilee where the man with leprosy lived; this man knew that there was nothing that Jesus couldn't do and made sure to come straight to Him.
This is why it is so important for the gospel to be proclaimed and for people to testify of what God has done in their life. Without it, people can never know about Jesus personally even though they have heard about Him generally. We live in a country where the majority of people have heard about Jesus from a general sense, but not from a personal perspective or even from an actual individual person. This should not be the case that we have more churches, more self-proclaimed Christians and more Christian literature than most countries combined; yet the individual sharing of the gospel and testifying on a personal level is lower than most other countries where Christianity is outlawed. We will see later on that this man who was an outcast in society became an evangelist in the kingdom simply because he testified of what Christ had done.
And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him. Hebrews 11:6 NASB
For people to know that God is, for people to know that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him; the church needs to open up her mouth and spread the news of who Jesus is and what He has done. Let us take the territories and the influence that God has given to us and use those opportunities for the advancement of the gospel.
For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Revelation 19:10b

0 Comments

Preaching the Gospel

3/5/2021

0 Comments

Text: Mark 1:35-39 35 And in the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and prayed there for a time. 36 Simon and his companions eagerly searched for Him; 37 and they found Him and said to Him, “Everyone is looking for You.” 38 He said to them, “Let’s go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may also preach there; for this is why I came.” 39 And He went into their synagogues preaching throughout Galilee, and casting out the demons.

1. When is the last time you shared the gospel with someone? A co-worker, a stranger, a family member etc. Share your experience below in the comments section

2. Do you find it difficult to speak up and share the gospel? Why or why not?

3. How have you overcome the fear of preaching the gospel? Share how that has happened in your life below to encourage others.

He said to them, “Let’s go somewhere else to the towns nearby, so that I may also preach there; for this is why I came.” And He went into their synagogues preaching throughout Galilee, and casting out the demons. Mark 1:38 & 39
I can remember around 10 years ago around Easter time while I was at work, that my boss began talking about the Easter church service he went to with his parents up in Dallas. My boss was not a follower of Christ by any means. But he said that after going to that service that he felt this sense, in his own words, to 'get his butt back in church.' He then asked me "do you still do church?" I can remember in my heart the moving of the Spirit letting me know that this was a great opportunity that had opened up for me to share the gospel with him. My boss already knew that I was a follower of Christ and that I was a pastor of a small home church, but I had not fully presented the gospel to him up to this point. I can remember at that moment the feelings of fear, insecurity and unworthiness that came over me and the desire just to take the easy way out and say: "That's nice, glad you enjoyed the Easter service. I'm sure it would be good for you to get back into church. Our service times are Sundays from 10-12-- hope to see you there!"
Sure, I had tried to demonstrate that I was a follower of Christ through my life and actions. But now was a clear moment for me to open my mouth and proclaim the full gospel of Jesus to a lost, hurting person. I went on to explain to him that getting back into church was not what he needed; instead he needed a relationship with the Creator of the church. We talked for a few minutes about sin and how it leads to death. I explained what Jesus did on the cross by taking our sin upon Himself and paying the penalty for our sin. Then, how when He rose from the dead showing that He was victorious over death so that whoever believes in Him will never die. He asked a few other questions and then went on his way. He didn't fall on his knees in repentance right then and there, and I don't know what came about in his life, but I pray that a seed was planted. This is just one story; I have others where I cowered away in fear and insecurity. To this day, I pray that the Lord will intervene in those peoples lives where I missed the mark.
Jesus left the crowds of people behind so that He could go and preach the gospel to the surrounding cities and regions. In fact, Jesus says regarding preaching the gospel: "..for this is why I came" (verse 38). There is a saying that is going around today which is: "preach the gospel, and if necessary, use words." I understand the sentiment surrounding this saying; live in such a way that people see your actions and lifestyle and can know that you are a follower of Christ. But understand this, there will always come a point where we will have to open our mouths and declare who Christ is-- Romans 10:14 tells us as much.
The power of the proclamation cannot be understated. Jesus not only live a holy and sacrificial life for all to see; He also proclaimed the truth of the gospel to the point of eventually being crucified for doing so.
The power of the tongue and the words we speak have enormous power in the lives of people, and in the spiritual realm. Jesus did not rebuke Satan in His heart when He was being tempted, He did so publicly through authoritative words.
James 3:3-5 tells us:
Now if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. 4Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. 5So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things.
James is getting this understanding of the power of the tongue from Christ Himself. Jesus says in Luke 6:45: “The good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth what is good; and the evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth what is evil; for his mouth speaks from that which fills his heart.
The revelation is this: "If our heart if full of Christ; we will walk like Christ. If our heart is full of Christ; we will speak like Christ and of the things of Christ."
As a church, let us be a people that unashamedly declare the gospel. Let us be those people that seem to only have Christ to speak about with any passion at all. Let the dribble of the world that flows from our lips slowly fade away as we focus on the power of God that is on earth today: the gospel of Jesus Christ.
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. Romans 1:16 NASB
12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him; 13 for “WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.” 14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? 15 How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, “HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!” Romans 10:12-15 NASB

0 Comments

Discipleship plan

Faith Comes by Hearing

Preaching the Gospel

Archives

Categories