How Jesus Reached People Series

The Gospel of Mark #8 – “How Jesus Reached People”

Mark 3:7-19

Intro –

1. Do you like to shave? I hate it! If it weren’t for my wife, I’d never shave! SLIDE – Big beard!

2. ILL – In the 1950s, marketing whiz Stanley Arnold was working at Young & Rubicam, where he was asked to come up with a marketing campaign for Remington Rand. The company was among the most conservative in America. Its chairman at the time was retired General Douglas MacArthur. Intimidated at first by a company that was so much a part of America, Arnold also found in that phrase the first inspiration for a campaign. After thinking about it, he went to the New York offices of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner and Beane, and placed the ultimate odd-lot order: "I want to purchase," he told the broker, "one share of every single stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange." After a vice president tried to talk him out of it, the order was finally placed. It came to more than $42,000 for one share in each of the 1098 companies listed on the Big Board at the time. Arnold now took his diversified portfolio into a meeting of Remington Rand's board of directors, where he argued passionately for a sweepstakes campaign with the top prize called A Share in America. The conservative old gentlemen shifted around in their seats and discussed the idea for a while. "But Mr. Arnold," said one, "we are not in the securities business." Said another, "We are in the shaver business." "I agree that you are not in the securities business," said Arnold, "but I think you also ought to realize that you are not in the shaver business either. You are in the people business." The company bought the idea.

3. Jesus was, is & always has been in the “people business.”

4. Everywhere we see Jesus in the gospels He is surrounded by all kinds of people. We have already seen in the gospel of Mark that Jesus called people to follow him (1:14-19); cast a demon out of a man in the synagogue (1:25-26); healed many people with diseases (1:32-34); healed a man with leprosy (1:40-45); healed a paralyzed man (2:1-12); called a tax collector & ate dinner with his despised friends (2:13-17); and healed a man with a withered hand (3:1-6).

5. Again, in our text today, we see Jesus dealing with people.

6. Mark 3:7-19 (read)

7. In our text, some of the people followed Him with wrong motives & some whose motives were pure. Either way, Jesus loved them & ministered to their needs.

8. SONG – Point of Grace “More than Anything”

God loves the weary when they're too weak to try.

He feels their pain, He knows their shame, He cries with those who cry.

He won't give up or walk away, when other people do.

'Cause God loves people more than anything!

God loves the wounded who've stumbled into sin.

He reaches down and pulls them out and cleans them up again.

And He will heal the broken heart that's given up on love.

'Cause God loves people more than anything!

9. How did Jesus Reach People?

I. Jesus Reached Out to Those in Need – Vs. 7-12

Jesus always put the needs of others above His own!

*Mark 10:45 “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

*Rom. 15:3 “For even Christ did not please himself but as it is written, ‘The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.”

Through the gospels we consistently see Jesus reaching out to those in need!

A. Even when it was inconvenient – vs. 7a “Jesus withdrew”

1. Notice that Jesus’ desire was to withdraw with His disciples to the lake to take a break from public ministry, but many people (“large crowd”) followed Him.

2. While Christ did not live in order to please Himself, He did take necessary steps to preserve Himself. Unless we get adequate sleep, proper recreation, balanced diet, etc.; we too may be “crushed” by the responsibilities of life & ministry.

3. However, in this case, he ministered to the needs of the crowd even though it interfered with what He was planning to do.

4. People love to say, “You have to learn to say no!” I agree to a point, “You have to learn to say no to good things, so you can say yes to the best things!”

5. I believe a need seen is often a divine call!

6. Mark 8:1-8 (read)

B. Even when it was insincere – vs. 8-12

1. To show the compassionate heart of Christ even more, we must realize that many of these people did not want a relationship with Christ, they just wanted what He could do for them.