Jesus Is In The House Series

GOSPEL OF MARK: GOD’S SERVANT IN ACTION

JESUS IS IN THE HOUSE

A. Mark 2:1-2 (READ)

ILLUSTRATION:

In churches where I have ministered over the years, on Sunday nights after evening worship we would head over to either our house or another member’s house for a FAMILY DEVOTIONAL. All the PARENTS and their CHILDREN were invited to these DEVOTIONALS that consisted of eating

finger foods, singing, praying, and sharing a message from God’s Word.

These DEVOTIONALS were always well attended with 60 to 70 or more people gathering in one HOUSE. All the chairs would be filled and the rest of the people would be sitting on the floor. It would be CROWDED, but everybody seemed to ENJOY it and looked forward to the NEXT one in someone else’s HOUSE. My GROWN children still FONDLY talk about the FAMILY DEVOTIONALS that we used to have in our HOMES.

B. Imagine what it would be like to be in the HOUSE in which Jesus was TEACHING?

1. Mark said that the HOUSE that Jesus was in was so CROWDED that there wasn’t any room left INSIDE

or OUT.

a. Jesus returns to Capernaum after HEALING the LEPER, and is probably at Peter’s HOUSE where He had HEALED Peter’s mother-in-law and where the CROWDS had gathered with their SICK and

DEMON-POSSESSED.

b. We learned last week that after the LEPER told everyone how Jesus had CURED him of his LEPROSY, the Lord was unable to enter a TOWN openly because of all the PEOPLE who were

CROWDING around him just to be HEALED.

2. This time, however, Jesus isn’t HEALING—He was PREACHING, and people were FILLING the

HOUSE to HEAR Him present the Word of God.

a. Again, last week we studied how “the PEOPLE were AMAZED at how Jesus taught God’s Word with such AUTHORITY” – Mark 1:22.

b. His MESSAGE was the same as that of John the Baptist and a MESSAGE still so NEEDED today: “REPENT of your SINS and BELIEVE the Good News”- Mark 1:15.

3. When JESUS IS IN THE HOUSE amazing things begin to HAPPEN.

MESSAGE:

I. JESUS IN PETER’S HOUSE

COMMENT:

Although the TEXT doesn’t say for certain that Jesus is preaching in Peter’s house, I believe

it is safe to ASSUME so. However, the owner of this HOUSE really doesn’t matter.

A. Faith of FOUR FRIENDS- Mark 2:3-5 (READ)

1. These four men have a friend who is PARALYZED, and they are desperately trying to get him to

Jesus to be HEALED. No doubt they heard what Jesus did the last when He was at Peter’s house.

COMMENT:

The house is so full of people, they just can’t get their FRIEND in past the CROWD. So, they go to PLAN B and climb up to the ROOF of the house. The common structure of first-century homes of Judea were FLAT ROOFS with STEPS on the SIDE of the house going up to the ROOF.

2. Their friend, being PARALYZED, is lying on a MAT.

a. Once they are on TOP of the ROOF, they make a PLAN as to how they are going to get their

FRIEND to Jesus.

COMMENT:

One of them comes up with the HAIR-BRAINED SCHEME to dig a HOLE in the ROOF large enough to LOWER their FRIEND while he is lying on the MAT into the ROOM where Jesus

is PREACHING

Imagine how WIDE that HOLE has to be—unless they just TIED him to the MAT and send

him down feet first, PRAYING that he wouldn’t SLIP OUT.

b. Have you ever wondered what the people INSIDE the HOUSE are thinking while these men are on the roof DIGGING through the MORTAR, TAR, STRAW and whatever else, making a

HOLE for their FRIEND?

ILLUSTRATION:

If someone was DIGGING through our FLAT ROOF right now making at 6-foot wide HOLE, don’t you think we would NOTICE? DUST and DEBRIS would be falling on us. Did Jesus keep on PREACHING, or did everyone STOP what they were DOING and WATCHED while a

PARALYZED MAN was being LOWERED from the ROOF?

If this is Peter’s HOUSE, what do you THINK is on his and his wife’s MIND right now? “Hope it doesn’t RAIN!” “Glad we don’t LIVE in Indianapolis!”

3. I’m not sure what anyone else is thinking, but Jesus is thinking, “Look at the FAITH of these guys.”

a. Mark records, “When Jesus saw their FAITH, He said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are

forgiven.’”- v. 5.

COMMENT:

I don’t know if this man’s PARALYSIS is the result of SIN or not. In John 9:1-3 when

“Jesus’ disciples thought that a man’s blindness was the result of sin, Jesus said it wasn’t.”

We do know, however, that one’s SINFUL LIFESTYLE can certainly lead to ILLNESS or ACCIDENTS. Think about the HIV virus, or INJURY or DEATH caused by DRUNK DRIVING.