Mark 2:
1And again he entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house. 2And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them. 3And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four. 4And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. 5When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.
11I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house. 12And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.
We live today in a land where the church houses are often filled; it is not uncommon to hear of a church with hundreds and even thousands in attendance. In and of itself attendance is not the issue that we will address in this message, but rather the condition of the hearts of those in attendance. It is often the case that we come to church for the wrong reasons: for personal blessings, for personal worship, for personal edification. When God is moving in the church house personal blessings should be the farthest things on our hearts. The large crowds that followed Jesus in his earthly ministry followed expecting their daily, physical needs to be met. Whether the need was healing, miracles, or simply the daily bread needed for life. When we come and bask in the glory of God, accepting his blessings, without ever considering the needs of the lost and undone outside of the saving grace of Jesus, we are no different than the crowds that followed Jesus simply for what he could do for them.
Illustration:
A German soldier was wounded. He was ordered to go to the military hospital for treatment. When he arrived at the large and imposing building, he saw two doors, one marked, "For the slightly wounded," and the other, "For the seriously wounded."
He entered through the first door and found himself going down a long hall. At the end of it were two more doors, one marked, "For officer" and the other, "For non-officers." He entered through the latter and found himself going down another long hall. At the end of it were two more doors, one marked, "For party members" and the other, "For non-party members." He took the second door, and when he opened it he found himself out on the street.
When the soldier returned home, his mother asked him, "How did you get along at the hospital?"
"Well, Mother," he replied, "to tell the truth, the people there didn’t do anything for me, but you ought to see the tremendous organization they have!"
The soldier’s comment describes many churches in our day: really organized, but accomplishing little.
Let us look now at the teaching of our Savior, Jesus Christ, concerning a church service that was disturbed for the Glory of God. If you will pardon the reference to a card game, I would like to title the message, "Four of a kind beats a full house."
I. A Full House: Mark 2:2
Because the house of God is full does not always mean that the house is full of God!
· Full of People: The 5000 on the mount, the crowd at the sea, the crowd and Jarius’ daughter all looking for what Jesus could do for them.
· Full of Pride: Many were taking pride in that they were close to Christ, taking no thought of others who could not say the same.
· Full of Preaching: The Word was preaching the Word. The preaching stopped when the sinner needed a touch.
By the foolishness of preaching 1 Corinthians 1:21
II. Four of a Kind: Mark 2:3
· Of like mind. Their hearts desire was to see this sinner brought to Jesus. We all have individual talents, but all should work together for the glory of God. 1 Peter 3:8 Philippians 2:2
· Of like motive. These men had a single motive, to get this sinner to the Savior. Nothing would stop them, not pride, manners, people, nothing could deter them from their goal of seeing this sinner meet Jesus, the great physician. Not willing that any should perish. 2 Peter 3:9
· Of like Motion. Their effort was concerted, if they had worked hard, but in different directions, the sinner would have never reached Jesus. Division in the house of God will lead to no good end and the loss of many opportunities to lead the lost to the Savior. 1 Corinthians 1:10
III. Faithfulness Rewarded: Mark 2:5
· Faith of the Four. The faith of the four men was a "using" type of faith. They had faith that if they could only get the sinner to Jesus, he would save them. James 2:26
· Faith of the Forsaken. They can not understand less someone show them. Acts 8:31. They must be led by the Holy Ghost and guided by the saved.
· Faith of the False-hearted: The scribes had been in attendance to criticize and complain, many today attend for the same purpose, and they hinder the moving of the Holy Ghost.
III. Fashionable Fanatics: Mark 2: 12
The congregation, used to religious ceremonies, had never experienced anything like the service where Jesus moved. The people left:
· Amazed Full of wonderment, in awe,
· Glorifying God The congregation sang praises to God for what they had just witnessed.
· A New Vision They had never seen anything like this Jesus. Once experienced, he can never be forgotten and his fellowship is longed for in every service, how soon we get over the Spirit of the Lord in our services.
Conclusion:
Have our churches become so full of Christians who’s devotions lie in the hearing of the Word, in personal worship, in personal blessings without regard for the lost and undone outside the church? Is the House of God so full that the sinner can not get through to find Jesus? Are their any who’s faith allows them to commit to the lost, knowing that if they can only get them to Jesus he will touch them? Is our faith such that we would go out and carry those who can not come on their own? The sinner is just as the palsied man, they can not come on their own, and someone must care enough for their souls that they would bring them to Jesus. Jesus stopped the church services and commended the men for their faith, and rewarded their faith by forgiving and then healing the palsied man. Will we continue to walk by the lost as we make our way to church? Jesus was clear in his teaching personal blessings should be secondary to sharing our blessed salvation with those who are outside the saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
