Two By Two

2 By 2

Mark 6: 1 – 13

Intro: Two little boys were on their way home after attending Sunday school where the lesson had been about the devil. One boy asked the other, “What do you think about this “devil thing”? The other boy responded, “You know how Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and the tooth fairy turned out, It’s got to be either your mother of your father.”

I The boys just didn’t get it. In an atmosphere of critical coldness or bland indifference, the most Spirit-packed words fall lifeless to the ground.

A VSS. 2 & 3 – “They took offense at him. He was just a repairman, Mary’s son – questioning his parentage. Familiarity breeds contempt. Goes back to Pulius, the Syrian in 2 BCE.

B Vs. 6 – He was amazed at their lack of faith.

C AMAZED = EKSTASIS = displacement of the mind, bewilderment, Literally, Put out of place. Astonishment involving shock and confusion.

II Vs. 7 Jesus sends out the 12 disciples 2 by 2. One could be the witness to the truth of what the other said.

A LK 7:3 The centurian heard about Jesus. Could it have been a result of the sending of the twelve?

B LK 7:9 – Jesus is “AMAZED” at the faith of the centurian, a Roman soldier.

C Only two places in the NT where Jesus is “AMAZED”. MK 6:6 – unbelief / LK 7:9 belief

Conclusion:

Our church has a 50’s mentality. Build it and they will come. That is no longer effective.

21st century mentality takes faith outside these walls telling people what God means to us, perhaps even going 2 by 2.

Assignment: Go home today and write a paragraph about what God has done for you.