6 Mark – Cut the Crap
Mark 2:1-12
It has taken the first five weeks to get through the first chapter of Mark. In the first chapter we have seen Mark establish:
Who Jesus is – The Holy one of God
That Jesus didn’t just come for Religious types, but all God’s people who will listen.
The Importance Jesus placed on spending time in prayer.
That Jesus and his teachings carried the Authority of God.
The Church isn’t exempt from the influence of Unclean Spirits so we need to seek God.
Those are several importance lessons.
Mark was very straight forward about the events of Jesus life. He didn’t get tied up in the nuances very much. Instead he just continually lays out what Jesus did as a matter of record. Here are the facts, straight and simple, you can argue some fine teaching points of theology, but you can’t argue with the man’s life. Jesus was serious, he came with a purpose, and you cannot deny what he did.
I sometimes like people like that; other times, they can seem a little over the top.
My best friend in high school is now a teacher, but when we were in college, he tried his hand at selling things. He worked for Amway, Long Distance Telephone services, all sorts of those door to door, sign you up, pyramid type business. I even remember him selling Kirby vacuum cleaners. No matter what he was selling, he always tried to get me to go in with him on stuff. I wasn’t a salesman, but Ricky could be. Mostly because whatever he was selling, he believed in. He believed it was the best. It was important and everyone would be better off with it. He was so excited that he made a vacuum cleaner seem interesting to a 19 year old. But there were times when I got tired of being asked to get my parents to make time to sit down for him to come do another demonstration. I wanted to block the doors and not let him find a way in, but usually Ricky would find a way around it.
It is similar to these four guys Mark tells us about today.
Mark 2:1-12
A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. 2 So many gathered that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 3 Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. 4 Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. 5 When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
6 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, 7 “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
8 Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? 9 Which is easier: to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins....” He said to the paralytic, 11 “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 12 He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”
I. Unpacking the Story
a. Jesus comes back home to Capernaum
i. When he was here, Jesus probably stayed at Peter’s house
ii. He was met with the same favorable crowd
1. They wanted to see Jesus heal more
2. Hear him teach
b. So many came that there was no room left at the house
i. Now a traditional Judean home
1. would have been of squarish shape with a flat roof and an external staircase. Outside the home would most likely be a small fenced courtyard that kept animals.
2. They were made out of clay, and limestone. The roof was formed with wooden beams and branches, clay, lime, manure, and other items compacted and rolled tightly together.
ii. The courtyard would have been filled with people
iii. No access to the inside left these four men with a dilemma
1. Do they wait
2. Do they go home since they can’t get in
iv. Certainly not – these men weren’t leaving
c. They had carried their friend to see Jesus to be healed
i. We don’t know the reasons for the man’s paralysis
1. He could have been born this way
2. He could have been a co-worker of these men that had been injured
3. He could have been suffering from a disease that lead to paralysis
ii. Many considered this type of problem to be the result of sin in a persons life
1. If you were blind it was because of your sin or possibly your parents sin if you had been born that way
2. People still seem to think that if something bad happens it must be because you upset God
3. When I cut my finger tip off a couple of years ago, I had a neighbor, who I’ve been trying to get to come to church say, “I heard what happened. I’m sorry. I was just thinking that if something bad like that can happen to you, I better be real careful.”
4. As though bad things won’t happen to you if you are right with God
iii. Jesus comment addresses this very real need – Many thought he was paralyzed because of sin in his life
1. Jesus said, “Son Your sins are forgiven.”
d. Of course that outraged the Pharisee’s
i. Only God could forgive sin
ii. For Jesus to offer such forgiveness was to claim deity for himself
1. To put his authority as equal to God’s
iii. Jesus knew what they were thinking
1. After giving a moment he spoke
2. Which is easier to forgive sins or to heal. But, so that you may see that the son of man has Authority on earth to forgive sins, “take up your mat and walk.”
3. Jesus proves his Authority by another miracle
iv. We’ve already established Jesus Authority
1. The Pharisee’s didn’t like it, because it made them less important
2. But other people were drawn to it
3. It was different
Let’s look at the other characters and learn from them in this story and see how they were drawn
II. The Four Friends
a. They had heard of Jesus and knew he could help their friend
i. We don’t know how far they had travelled
ii. We don’t know how long this man had been paralyzed
iii. But they were going to see Jesus
b. Can you imagine sitting in the crowded house?
i. Jesus in the center teaching
ii. People shoulder to shoulder
iii. The temperature elevated due to body heat
iv. And then you start seeing pieces of the ceiling crumbling
1. People are pulling twigs or clay out of their hair
2. At first you didn’t notice the noise because of all the people
3. But as you watch little pieces of clay and dried branches flake from the ceiling you hear someone picking at it
4. In a moment sunlight starts to brighten the room as a clump falls to the floor
5. Just as no one could get in, no one can get out now
6. Is the house falling because of the occupancy level
7. No you see hands start reaching through the roof and they are pulling it apart, making a bigger hole.
8. Who are These Guys?
c. They were four men who weren’t going to let anything stand between themselves and Jesus.
i. Just think about it – It wasn’t their house
1. I’m not sure about then, but I would think it to be rude to tear a hole in someone else’s roof
2. It wasn’t polite
3. What about all the people that had clay, sticks, manure, and sorts of stuff falling in their hair?
a. They had come to hear Jesus teach – why were they interrupting
ii. Fear of a crowd wasn’t going to keep them from getting to Jesus
1. It didn’t matter what other people thought
a. No Fear of Man here
b. They weren’t concerned about offending someone
c. They weren’t worrying about pieces of crap falling on people listening – they literally cut the crap
d. No political politeness
2. They recognized what needed to be done and did it
d. Do we need to cut the crap?
i. How many of us want to say we are trying our best to live like Christ – but if we are asked how we are purposefully making effort to be more like Christ – we don’t have anything specific we are doing?
ii. We are not pushing ourselves
1. We practice no Spiritual Disciplines
a. We don’t try to fast
b. We pray – when we think about it
c. We read our Bible – on occasion, but aren’t disciplining our selves to do more
2. Our lives may look good to others, but we know how spiritually weak we are becoming because we aren’t really running the race
a. Were strolling along
iii. We use excuses like – I’m so busy – I try, but its hard
1. Yeah it’s hard –that’s why Paul wrote that he beat his body
2. He made himself do what was necessary
iv. Well I don’t know what I ought to do
1. Ask someone
v. I need better resources
1. The guys carrying the paralytic – they didn’t go to the house intending to cut a hole in the roof
a. They had no resources with them
b. They just got in there
2. There are libraries of resources for us to grow as Christians
3. The internet has more Bible study sites then I can count
vi. Why don’t you memorize scripture?
1. My memory isn’t that good – what time does your favorite TV show come on – I bet you can remember that.
2. There are communities in Africa where each of the people memorize sections of scripture from someone else reading it –all so they can teach each other because they don’t have a Bible in their language.
e. I’m not trying to fuss at anyone – I’m in the same boat as everyone else
i. I’ve got to quit being satisfied with where I am, how good things are going, - and strive for maturity until we attain the full measure of Christ
ii. I want to fight the good fight – I want to be prepared for that fight
I want to win
I want to be more
I want to be more like Christ – less like me.
Less like the world.
I want to make a difference – because I live differently.
I want to grow – I want to walk with God – talk with God – and hear him say “Well done my good and faithful servant.”
I don’t want to take him for granted – I want more of him in my life.
I want to proclaim with Christ – No Longer I who live, but Christ Who lives within me!
Will You say it with me?
Cut the crap – Pick something in your life that’s got to change – and give it to God.
Jesus died on the cross so that nothing would separate us from him. It is the cross that bridges that gap between us.
Whatever it is that you need to change, whatever is standing in the way of you being closer to God – today you are invited to step forward write it on piece of paper here at the front fold it in half – and tack it to the cross.
(Play – How He Loves Us)
