Hanging out with Jesus XI: Kingdom Unmatched Greatness

Hanging out with Jesus XI: Kingdom Unmatched Greatness

Mark 4: 21  - 34

No greatness can match that of the Kingdom of God - meaning the reign or rule of God. If you miss the kingdom, you have missed Jesus. Jesus came to bring the kingdom of God. It was what he lived, preached and taught. To him it was good news to humanity. He prayed 'thy kingdom come'. He demonstrated its compassion and power. He told its mysteries through parables - the greatest mystery being ‘Christ in you the hope of glory’ (Colossians 1:27). The kingdom is in you because the king lives in you. If you know who is in you, he will show you who you are in him. Knowing who you are is the hope of glory. He exhorted his disciples to seek the kingdom and it's righteousness in order to find everything else (Mathew 6:33). For everything is in the kingdom of God.

Disciples are people who live and are learning to live under the reign of God. Paul wrote that ‘for He rescued us (past tense) from the dominion of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son (Colossians 1:13)’. We were rescued from being captives of darkness to being citizens of the kingdom of God where his beloved son rules. The kingdom of light for he is light. He in you and the kingdom word in you is light (Psalm 119:10, John 9:5). The joy of our faith is that the throne is not vacant. Our king reigns. As long as he is on the throne all things are under control. All we do is to submit to him. Discipleship is about loving the kingdom because you are in love with the king.

Today's passage brings out four ways to bring out the unmatched greatness of God’s kingdom in the real world of your life with its real challenges and opportunities.

Way 1. Make it known (v. 21 – 22)

 Jesus compared the kingdom of God to the oil lamp  used in those days. The lamp  represents the light that comes into the heart of believers. It came concealed that is why many miss it. God concealed kingdom of light in you not to hide it from everyone else but  for you to shine the hidden light out for all to see and benefit. The time for concealing your light is over. As a believer, you are either a bushel by hiding it or a lamp stand by lighting up the room or life situations in which you find yourself. Let the hidden light in you shine in order for the darkness that keep people from knowing God to flee.  Many are still in the dark to the true significance of the Kingdom of God  and need the illuminationation of the light in you. The light exposes the hidden sinfulness and secrets in the works. Without your light shining  evil in the world will remain hidden.  Let the world see the greatness and glory of the reign that is inside you.   That is the purpose for your transformation and the thirty, sixty, hundredfold fruit in Christ.

Choose to be a lamp stand and let the light come out by:

• Your verbal testimonies of how Christ has touched your life. Cultivate the culture of sharing what God has done for you whether you think it is small or great.
• Through your actions of good works that show God’s character of integrity, wisdom, power, mercy, tenderness and compassion. Spiritual fruit is light that must be on a lamp stand shining brightly and not hidden.
• Through a loving community of believers. The way believers live and interact with each other. As they worship together, serve together, pray with each other etc  they are putting out the light or letting it shine to observers. They will know we are his disciples if we have love, one for another.

Way 2. Make use of it (v. 23 – 25)

Let him who has ears hear or take heed (Mark 4:24). In other words, let him who hears the kingdom message hear with understanding and faith. The challenge is to invest in high quality listening. The  Greek is 'Look at what you hear.'   You can easily miss treasure unless you invest time and effort into listening, examine and take seriously, what you hear. Do you enjoy, zealously apply and utilize it in everyday life.

Making use of what you hear is very important because the measure with which you utilize it is the measure with which more is given to you. The level of response is the level of revelation and anointing. Utilization of what you have received  is the way to open doors for more. (Also refer to parable of talents (Mathew 25:29)).

Way 3. Trust it to grow (v. 26 – 29)

Kingdom seed is designed to grow. It is a growing seed. It works and produces a harvest. Any faith action or action in response to God's word is seed put to the ground. So is any word of God shared or sown in people's hearts. The seed grows 'all by itself' v.28. The Greek is ‘automatos’ meaning 'without visible cause' or apart from human effort. You cannot grow the seed by your effort. You will end up frustrated with religion that has no power. Trust the seed to grow mysteriously. Trust God to do his part. You do not need to understand how the result will come, how the answer will come and how the break through will be. The power of God works 'automatos'. Divine 'automatos' is the behind the scenes workings of God in your favor. All you need is to faithfully sow, obey and expectantly wait. In the story, the sower went to sleep. If there is something making you sleepless, you need the rest and patience of kingdom sowing. Trust that God is working even when you cannot see him, even when You cannot feel him,  even when it seems there is no answer from him. Believe that he is still ruling, he is still in charge. Believe he is in control and in due season he brings together all things made beautiful. Eventually the harvest will be there.

Way 4. Respect it always (v. 30 – 34)

Trust God even when kingdom seed or initiative looks small. Do not look down on it. Despise not its humble appearances and humble beginnings. It is through the small and unimpressive little things in life that God brings about the big things.  The kingdom is like a mustard seed. Even faith as small as a mustard seed can move mountains (Mathew 17:20). A seed so small that you almost cannot see it without a magnifying glass yet grows to a large bush of up to five meters tall. 

The seed was so small that people of the day used the simile ' as small as a mustard seed' to describe any extreme smallness. However, what started unseen grew to being impossible to ignore. It attained such influence that it dominated the view. The kingdom of God also had a humble beginning among ‘have nots’ and with a few committed followers. The four became twelve and in the upper room was a  120 group of insignificant people from a human perspective. Yet they executed the mammoth task to reach the world - clearly a mission impossible. Yet now there is no world system uninfluenced or challenged by God’s kingdom and there are billions recorded as Christians.

In the end according to Ezekiel 17:23, birds of the air meaning other nations will find shelter under God’s kingdom. It will bring its influence and light to all nations.  When all kingdoms fall, God’s kingdom will be the only one that will still be standing. And we are its citizens to live forever with the King of Kings when the kingdom of God manifests in its fullness. At that time evil will be judged and tears will be wiped away. We will gather with the multitude around the throne of God -  every nation, language, and people with one voice praising God.

Begin now to show forth his kingdom unmatched greatness:

- Let the light shine for the world to see

-Apply the word and see it perform  wonders

- Trust the seed you have sown to grow and you will enjoy harvest

- Uncompromisingly resist the temptation to despise the kingdom seed because of its circumstances, delays or appearances. By faith, always be aware of its unlimited potential and endless possibility. 

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa 

Hanging out with Jesus X: Checkpoints to Spiritual Maturity

Hanging out with Jesus X: Checkpoints to Spiritual Maturity

Mark 4:1 - 20

The passage under review is about Jesus ministering on the seaside in Capernaum. Typically great crowds of people gathered to hear him and experience his mighty works of healing and deliverance. On this occasion, he told a story commonly known as the parable of the sower but because of its emphasis could also be the parable of the soils.  

The word “parable” means, “to cast alongside of”. Jesus told nearly sixty parables that are found in the Gospels. The parables were earthly life stories with a heavenly meaning. They were natural stories with spiritual meaning. Everyday life stories that illustrated deep things of God. 

 Jesus explained why he often preached in parables (Mark 4:11-12). He used parables to reveal truth to those who were willing to pursue it and embrace it, and to conceal truth from those who would trample on it, abuse and reject it. He therefore told parables in public and in private to smaller group settings explained them. The smaller group comprised his disciples and others hungry enough to find out the meaning. They set themselves from the crowd by being hungry for understanding. They set themselves apart from opportunists to be with real seekers who were not satisfied with mere stories but wanted the mystery in the stories. Jesus reveals spiritual mysteries to those hungry for understanding and to committed disciples. To those determined enough to pursue him to find out more about what he shared in public. The principle to believers is that you will not find the deep meaning of scripture from what you read on the surface. Instead, follow through in prayerful meditation and allow Jesus to explain.

THE SOWER

The sower represents any one or the means by which seed of the word of God or seed of the kingdom reaches people's hearts. It can be a preacher, a gospel singer, a tract, a television program, etc. The sower scatters the seed.  Ultimately, God is the sower and he makes his disciples into fellow sowers (Mathew 4:19).

- The sower is entrusted with seed.  Sowers must be faithful to do their part. They go out to the people and sow the seed. That way, sowers play the vital role of setting into motion the process to spiritual growth. God needs sowers. The soil needs sowers. God's priority is therefore to make his people sowers.

- The sowers in ancient Palestine scattered seed as the normal way to sow. When they scattered seed some fell for example on pathways made by people and animals passing through the fields. The seed fell on different kinds of surfaces. Therefore, the farmer was not careless and wasteful to throw seed on unproductive areas. The sower did not always know the type of soil. This example is a perfect illustration for the sower of God's word who does not know the quality of hearts the seed falls on. He is deals with concealed hearts of people. Therefore, he casts the seed indiscriminately by faith that it falls on good hearts. Not being certain of the quality of soil is a challenge sowers of the word have to live with. Whereas the perfect nature of the sower and his seed are known, it is after sowing that the quality of the soil is discovered.

THE SEED

 The seed is the message of grace and the kingdom. It is the good news that Jesus came into this world, died for sinners, rose again from the dead to offer full and free salvation to everyone who would believe. All people receive the same seed.   'The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe' (John 6:63, 64).  The problem of some believers being fruitful and others lacking spiritual maturity and fruit does not lie with the seed but the soil - heart conditions/attitudes.

THE SOIL

The parables had one primary truth - in the current passage, the truth was the quality of soil affects the harvest. Poor soil not only limits growth, but also produces frustration for the sower. God wants you to know your own heart, which is the soil for God’s seed, and make sure it does not hinder your spiritual maturity. Every person is responsible for the condition of his/her heart. To give an example, I had the experience of growing sweet potatoes. They only produced rich leaves but no fruit. The reason being, we had not checked the soil and only later learnt that the soil needed lime to be productive.

The parable of the soils presents four heart checkpoints on the journey to spiritual maturity.  As at a road checkpoint, authorities stop and inspect travelers to check if they have what is required to proceed.  The inspections in the process of spiritual maturity are about the quality of the heart ‘soil’. Not all soil is equal. Soil can be good or poor. People hear the same word but respond to it differently.

The parable of the soils reveals four inspections you must pass to proceed to maturity and bear fruit. Check yourself on the following four checkpoints on your spiritual journey. 

Checkpoint One - Hard Soil

Check if the soil of your heart is cultivated to hold seed. Is there foundation for the word to find root and grow. The hard ground, or wayside soil, was on trails through a field trodden repeatedly by people and animals. Trampled underfoot for a longtime wayside hearts have become hard hearted. They are no longer sensitive to God’s word. They find reasons not to believe (1 Corinthians 1:18).  Satan and his minions easily and immediately come to steal the word. As a result, they forget the word they hear. Enemies of faith work mind and hearts of hearers of the word to make the word of no effect.   

People with such hearts ignore or neglect the word. Repeated disobedience and persistent neglect have hardened their hearts. They seek after a gospel for the moment with zero commitment. They hear but are not convicted and transformed. Maybe they harbor sin. 

Checkpoint Two - Rocky Soil

Check the depth of the soil. The soil in the parable had a thin soil layer under the surface before it became rocky. That represents shallow belief that hinders progress to spiritual maturity. Spiritual comes from a deeper level of understanding and inner fortitude.  

The seed germinates but the roots cannot go very deep and as a result, the plant is scorched by the heat of the sun.  The plants become parched, wilted, and unproductive. People with such hearts receive the word. They are sensitive to it and respond with an early enthusiasm. The shallowness is not obvious. They attend church like everyone else. However they are fair weather believers who when they face the heat of difficulties, trials and trouble they get offended. They have a superficial emotional commitment and most of what they do is for show. They are there to follow the crowd. At work, they are embarrassed about being a Christian for fear of persecution.  Those planted in rocky soil desire to hear only what feels good and tickles their ears. They love a sugarcoated gospel.  They know little about repentance and dying to self.  Perhaps they heard a shallow presentation of the Gospel that presents the benefits of salvation but does not show the costs.

Checkpoint Three - Weedy Soil

Check your priorities in the face of competing interests. Weeds in a garden such as dandelion in a lawn, not only crowd out the desired plants, but they also sap nutrients for growth and good yield. The soil with weeds represents hearts of people who gladly receive the word of the kingdom but fail to seek it first (Mathew 6:33). All seems well but the competing seeds and roots of weeds are below the surface. As the seed germinates, the weeds spring forth and choke it.  People with weedy hearts do not have absolute commitment to the word. Their commitment is selective such that they obey the word when it suits them. Unlike the stony heart that runs from God in trouble, the weedy only runs to God in trouble. To grow to maturity, check if your time allocation and priorities is in line with your values from God’s word. Weedy people have difficulty with spiritual priorities. 

People with this kind of heart are easily distracted and diverted towards preoccupation with life desires, pleasures and cares that compete with the desire for God. They are torn in a different direction from that of God. They cannot discern God’s direction when making important or urgent decisions in their lives. They quickly get preoccupied with chasing after earthly riches (verse 19). They find time and resources for everything else but find excuses such as 'I am tired' and ‘I am too busy' when it comes to spiritual responsibilities. They keep procrastinating doing what is first and right. Before long, they are ruled by their busyness such as hobbies, work activities, and acquiring possessions. In the end, God's word is squeezed out of their lives. Their first love soon fades away. They want to put their hearts in both worlds. However, God said you will find me if you search me with all your heart.

What is choking your connection to God, squeezing his life out of you, and stifling your spiritual growth?

Checkpoint Four - Good Soil

Check the measure of your expectation. The good soil is highly productive. The soil produces a yield that is thirty fold, sixty fold and a hundred fold.  Hundred fold is the high end of the scale to expect even in drought conditions (Genesis 22:12). People with hearts of good soil remember and obey God's word, and show healthy spiritual commitment that is unmoved by trials or things of this world.  They hear, seek understanding and apply the word in their lives. The only yield limit to people with such a heart is their faith (Mark 9:23). At this checkpoint, make sure you have enough jars and baskets to collect the harvest and you build large enough barns to store it. 

The spiritual fruit to expect in abundance from good soil includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22, Colossians 1:10). It also includes hearing the voice of the Holy Spirit who gives understanding, a strong desire to share Christ with others (Romans 1:13), to forgive, to share material things you receive (Romans 15:27-28), and to always give thanks to God (Hebrew 13:15).

So what kind of soil are you? Failure at the four checkpoints in the maturing process is the cause of spiritual failure. Be diligent because good soil neglected can slowly become hardened and leave you at a distant from God. On the other hand, what ever your type of soil it can be transformed to good soil. Like the disciples who asked Jesus to explain the parables also be hungry enough to ask him. Qualify for mysteries by being committed to bringing souls and make makers of disciples. Set yourself apart from the seaside crowd by commitment to follow through, being teachable, seeking, and probing. Move from mere stories to mysteries with Christ. Allow the Holy Spirit to teach you all truth. Make the right choices of trusting the word of God and putting him in first place in your life. God does not want you to start only with strong promise like the stony and weedy hearts but to finish strong like the good soil. 

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa 

Hanging out with Jesus IX: Up the Mountain with Him

Hanging out with Jesus IX: Up the Mountain with Him

Mark 3:7 – 35.      Key verses Mark 3: 13 -19

The passage (Mark 3:7 – 35) presents four kinds of people that sought for Jesus - those who pressured him, those who pursued him, those who persecuted him and those protective of him.  This message is helpful as you seek Jesus to find out which of the four you are and why you need to pursue him up the mountain.

The passage traces Jesus’ moves from the synagogue where he healed a man with a withered hand. What a remarkable miracle. Infirmity is an attack not just on a person but a deprivation of what the person could do without it.  The withered hand deprived the man of opportunity to work for his living using the withered hand. Jesus is always thinking beyond what meets the eyes. When he forgives sin, he is restoring what was lost due to sin.

1) Those who pressured him (Seaside people) Mark 3:7 - 12

From the synagogue, Jesus withdrew to the seaside then went up a mountain before going back to the house. Wherever he went, he continued to share the message and do mighty works. He demonstrated that God’s work is not limited to a special day or a special place. It takes place wherever God’s people are obedient.

The seaside was the market place of those days. It brought people from many regions. It was a place for commerce and trade. It was a place for fishing and was a key hub for water transportation. That being the place where goods and money exchanged hands many people thronged the seaside. When Jesus visited the seaside, his message was relevant. He became busy with crowds pressing on him for deliverance and healing. Wherever there are people there are needs. And wherever there are human needs, Jesus is the answer.

The book of Mark records more of the miracles of our Lord than his teaching discourses.  Jesus turned the seaside from a hive of commercial activity to a hive of commendable miracles.  People from far and near made up the crowd about Jesus because of the great things they heard he did (Mark 3:8).  He had to borrow a boat to control the crowds of many wanting to touch him for freedom from unclean spirits and diseases. He stopped unclean spirits from making him known because they were unfit to do so. The main lesson is that great things Jesus does through his people will also draw crowds today.

2) Those who pursued him (Mountain top people) Mark 3: 13 -19

The biggest responsibility of Adam was obedience and multiplication. He failed on obedience and multiplied disobedient people. The last Adam, Christ was both obedient and multiplied obedient people. By his obedience he provided salvation and his biggest achievement after was sowing in his disciples the seed for multiplication. The seed was a conviction not to keep the good news to themselves but to share it and equip others to do the same (Mathew 28:18 – 20; 2 Tim 2:2). Jesus was popular and attracted a massive adoring crowd around him but that was not enough to make him complacent. He had not come to be popular but to fulfill a purpose. That purpose was to establish a strategy of multiplication of his co-laborers. He needed not only to find needy people and meet their needs but also to mobilize people to send out to do the same - preach, drive out demons and heal.

He called people out of the world and then out of the crowd to go and represent him with power and a message of hope for a needy world. The people that came to see and seek Jesus formed crowds that pressured him. Among them were people that pursued the giver not just the gift.   Jesus filtered the later out when he went up the mountain (Mark 3:13).  It was a place of recess and retirement, which he needed to refresh and to pray. Luke points out that he continued in prayer the whole night (Luke 6:12).

He called close followers from the crowd up the mountain and from among them, he chose the twelve he appointed Apostles. He transformed them from being in the crowd to being in the core.  From crowding Jesus for what he could do for them to being crowd pullers for Jesus. From experiencing his power to exercising it.  Their point of interest was shifted from seeing and touching him to knowing him.  They were not content with pushing and shoving him and pursued him up the mountain.  Those who pursue Jesus up the mountain of prayer are the ones who hear his call to be near him. Those who draw near to him he draws near to them. He calls them to be with him so that he might send them out with power. His formula for their success was to be with him. The solution to lack of power is to be with him. May the Lord send forth more and more of those with him in our day?

Christ chose those that God gave him (John 6:37; 17:6). That is why he needed to pray before choosing. To be disciple makers we teach and model spending time with Jesus in prayer without ceasing.  To be with him in the mountain of prayer, walk with him, live with him and follow him.  He chose them to go and succeed in bearing much fruit (John 15:16). He chose twelve.

Twelve is the number of humanity also with reference to the twelve tribes of Israel. They were ordinary but he transformed them into extraordinary achievers. They were most probably less qualified than most of us.  Jesus does not call the qualified but qualifies the called.  If Jesus had hired you to recruit for him, who would you have chosen. You would have thrown out most of them except Judas and perhaps Bartholomew and Thaddaeus whom we never hear about, if not polished religious experts with theology papers of the day. You would ask for a CV, Jesus offered a plan.  His plan suits you from wherever you begin. You would look at history, experience and education He looked at the future and a heart to follow, learn. You would look at the natural he looked at the spiritual by choosing prayerfully.

He chose the following:

-           Simon to whom he gave the name Peter or ‘rock’.  Simon was highly impulsive But Christ saw his potential.  He later denied Jesus when he needed support the most but repented of what he did.

-           John and James who he called Boarnerges (sons of thunder).  They seemed to be volatile with anger and selfishly competitive. They wished to call down fire from heaven to consume a village of the Samaritans (Luke_9:54).   They fought for top positions (Mark 10:35-39).  They wanted to kick out people who were casting out demons in Jesus name but were not in their group (Mark 9:38). Yet Jesus saw something loud and powerful about them.  In the end, he transformed John into an Apostle of LOVE and tenderness, who referred to himself as the beloved disciple.

-           Mathew as we saw on message VIII of this series was a despised tax collector who cheated people out of their money and betrayed his own people by working for Rome.

-           Simon the zealot. He was part of a group of Jewish extremists organized to overthrow Rome by force if necessary.

-           Thomas a skeptic who only believed after you produced hard evidence.  He said he would not believe unless he saw the resurrected Lord and his pierced hands.

-           Judas Iscariot who was so clever with money matters that he was assigned the group’s purse. He stole from the purse and later betrayed Jesus and committed suicide afterwards.

-           Andrew who introduced his brother Peter to Jesus and we do not hear about him after Christ is crucified.

-           James son of Alphaeus. He seems to have been known mostly for what his parent Alphaeus did.

The others were Phillip, Bartholomew and Thaddaeus

3) Those who persecuted him

You need the mountain experience because down the mountain you face persecutors and people who press for solutions. How blessed to face your persecutors on your way from the mountain of prayer. Jesus met the law experts and Pharisees who hated him and wished him dead. They disliked him because he reproved them and exposed their hypocrisy. Also, they hated him because he won the hearts of the people and dented their influence.  Is it not typical of wrong doers that they often would rather remove the people that reprove them than forsake their wrongdoing? They will rather destroy the mirror than sorting their faces out.  However the more the truth is suppressed, the more it comes out.  The more they hated him the more people valued him and even followed him wherever he went even to his places of rest. 

Some experts from Jerusalem wanted to discredit his work/ dissuade people from following by alleging he cast out demons through Beelzebub. 

-           He gave a lesson. If Beelzebub house stands, how is that possible if it is divided? A divided house cannot stand.

-           He gave an explanation. The only way he was able to ransack Beelzebub’s house and drive out his demons was that he had power over the head of the house and bound him first.

-          He gave a warning. Do not attribute the things of the Holy Spirit to demons. Doing so is an unpardonable sin.

4) Those protective of him

They could not trust Jesus to make sound decisions for himself without their help. How often do we want to help him with handling our life situations and holding our future?  To them he was outside his normal mind and needed to be rescued from endangering his own life. They heard reports that he was not resting and was not even finding room to eat (Mark 3:20, 21). So either out of care or reproach they stood outside the house and send word to summon him. They wanted to monopolize him as their close relation but he taught that he was for all who did God’s will.

Jesus response that he saw people who did God’s will as his family, provide the lesson of the extent to which disciple makers should value their relationship with disciples.  Another lesson is that those serious with disciple making can easily bear with inconveniences in the prosecution of it. They are prepared to make sacrifices to grab opportunities to do what is good.

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

Hanging Out With Jesus VIII: Clash of the New and the Old

Hanging Out With Jesus VIII: Clash of the New and the Old

Read Mark 2:13 – 3:6

Key Text is Mark 2:21 – 22

Moving from where you are to where God wants you to be is a change process. In discipleship Jesus  brings that change. He did not only bring life for every person but a process for everyone to pass on the life to others. Bringing change is not easy because accepting change is difficult. Discipleship therefore faces resistance. No wonder Jesus the master discipler and change agent was opposed, quizzed and misunderstood. Unlike the preceding Chapter full of what Jesus did the passage under consideration has more words  of how Jesus  responded to his critics.

Jesus came to establish a new kingdom. He brought a new nature where there was an old nature. A new heart where there was an old heart. A new covenant where there was an old covenant. A new culture where there was an old culture. A new theology where there was an old theology. When you bring the new be prepared for resistance from the old and it's defenders. There are a variety of reasons why the change Jesus brought was resisted.  Many felt secure with the familiar. They had developed convictions about the old way. They had mastered how to live and flourish in the old. They were comfortable  it.  They had invested in synagogues and education about the old. They live under the assumption we have it neatly put together. There is nothing new to learn or embrace, They therefore defended the status quo. They saw the new way  as a threat to the  privileges they enjoyed. His critics therefore even thought spoke in God's name, were not fighting for God but for themselves, their traditions and self-righteousness.  Another reason the change Jesus brought was resisted is the fact that the matter was spiritual. His coming established a new spiritual order and hence faced spiritual resistance.

Jesus' greatest opposition did not come from the sinners – the prostitutes, the alcoholics and the drug pushers. It came first from religious people and then from the political establishment. The Pharisees criticized and disapproved of Jesus. If they did not criticize his teachings, it was his choice of friends and lifestyle, or something else.  Being criticized is already a given in life. Not everyone will like you or applaud you.  Bringing change makes matters worse.

In the passage, five times Jesus responded to those opposed to his message and work. Their hostility escalated from thoughts, indirect, twice direct and to silence and plotting to do physical harm. He was criticized for the following five 'offenses':

1) Forgiving Sin  (2:8)

The Pharisees and scribes questioned in their hearts why he said son, your sins are forgiven,  they pondered Why he spoke that way? He is blaspheming, they asserted.  Who can forgive sins but God alone? They came close to knowing he was God but were in denial.

2) Associating with Sinners   (13-17).

They questioned him through  his disciples. He taught crowds and called Levi. He ate a meal with tax collectors and sinners in Levi’s home.   Question – Why does he eat with tax collectors.

In the passage read Jesus was quizzed about  his eating practices in the light of the law of Moses. It is interesting that the issues raised by the Pharisees were mostly  about eating. what you eat, who you it with and when you eat. Eating is very spiritual. One’s eating habits affect one’s spirituality.

The most controversial choice of a disciple was not Judas but Levi or Matthew.  The Jews hated tax collectors because collected taxes from their own people to hand over to their most hated oppressors the Roman Government. They were considered to be Jews that sided with the Romans and therefore were traitors. They were also considered as extortioners because they laid unfair charges for personal gain. They made a living by overcharging.

All people eat so eating is an opportunity to connect.   Jesus decided who to eat with by  what cause it served. He came to save sinners and had to make contact with them to present his offer.  Like a physician is of benefit to those who are sick and therefore has to make contact with them.  Meeting and eating with sinners is how he found all of us. He saw purpose not just personality or group affiliation. He saw the future more than the past. He saw the inward not just the outward. He saw potential in people more than their present state.

 In Levi he also found a man of peace.  To complete your mission in church, business, work place and village you also need people of peace. They are your advocates. Every project faces advocates and adversaries. People of peace  These value what you offer and make it known to people in need of it and link you up with them.  Through Levi Jesus was able to reach out to many tax collectors and sinners.

As Christians, we should turn from the sinful habits of the world, without isolating ourselves from contact with the people of the world  (2 Corinthians 6:14-17, 1 John 2:15-16). the church is as a hospital where the hurting and needy are ministered.  We need to maintain contact with the unsaved as salt and light. We can have them visit our homes and visit theirs. Create proximity spaces of common interests such as safe environment, sports, etc. You can extend a helping hand in times of need and receive their help. You can tell how Christ changed your life and invite them to relevant gatherings of believers.

3) For not Fasting as Expected (18-22)

They asked why his disciples did not fast like those of  John and of the Pharisees. Jesus made it clear that  he had not come to keep business as usual. He had brought a radical shift to life as a true bridegroom. He brought a new way of thinking and practice. His disciples were therefore in transit from an inferior to a superior way of viewing religious practices.    He associated their fasting with an old dispensation where fasting had become an empty tradition. He brought  new wine or joy that required new wine skins and new garments or covering.  He called it new and implied it was superior than the old. A new patch sewn on an old garment will tear it or new wine poured in old wine skins will burst.

To the Lord Jesus the decision whether to eat or fast must be guided by  spiritual understanding, occasion and season. When a new dispensation was established, the disciples would then fast with a fresh understanding. It would be no longer to earn righteousness or anything but to acknowledge God as superior to the stomach.   Their old wines were religious. For some today they are secular. Whatever you had when you met Christ has to give way to his abundant life. Jesus brought a message so radical that it required a new way of thinking and living. We must also change the way we think to accommodate the new wine in Christ. Since receiving Christ what have you let go. That will tell what you have embraced. What are you holding on to that is holding you back. nothing can hold you back except what you are holding on to. The choice between the old and the new is a forced one. There is no middle option.

4) For Violating the Sabbath/Law (23-28 )  

Jesus was criticized directly for letting his disciples pick grain in the fields as they went along the way. His response was to highlight life before the law.  The law serves people and not vice versa. Everything, the material, times and other things were made for people to use to the glory of God. The laws that govern the relationship of people with time and things were therefore made for people.  They were meant to point people to God.  The Sabbath  was therefore  made for people and not vice versa. The spirit of the law is more important than its letter. Transformation is more important than mere tradition. Function is more important than the form of religion.

To support his argument Jesus gave the precedence of how David when hungry ate the sacred bread reserved for priests.  He also emphasized that observance of the law was to be an acknowledgement of God.  Anything the son of man is not Lord over is an idol.  You can obey as a religion or as a relationship with God.  Jude warned about allowing the stomach to become your god.

5) For Healing a Man with a Withered Hand (3:1-8)

They pondered about healing on Sabbath. He wondered how they had become so insensitive to the plight of a fellow human being. For the legal questions in their heart he asked, “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath. To save life or destroy.”    They did not answer.

The bottom line was not the day of healing but their failure to see the need to heal a suffering person. He was grieved by their hardness of heart.  Failure to be moved by the plight of others is a symptom of hardness of heart.  They only focused on wanting to see if he would follow a Sabbath man made tradition.

They thought they knew something about God.  He came to correct  misunderstanding of God.  If you have misunderstood God you will struggle to embrace Jesus. Could you have misunderstood Jesus in your heart? He came to correct your misunderstanding.   If you doubt his ability you have misunderstood him. If you think your situation is irredeemable you have misunderstood him.  You need a new wine skin of his salvation and faith to receive his new wine.

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa

Hanging Out with Jesus VII: Damage to Peter's House

Hanging Out with Jesus VII: Damage to Peter's House

Mark 2:1-12

The four men who carried their paralysed friend in need through the roof to take him to Jesus in a house offer many lessons. They teach the unstoppable power of determination, friendship, love, team work/cooperation, shared goal, common attitude/faith, united action and intercession.  They bring a challenge - will you spur one another as friends toward love and good deeds. Will you cut a hole in the roof of a house and lower people down to the Lord in prayer? Will you cut the hole in the roof and lower people to the Lord for salvation? Paralysis today could be anger, despair, sickness, alcohol, nicotine, drugs, and promiscuous sexual activity, etc.

Jesus returned ‘home’ to Capernaum - most probably the house of Peter (Mark 1:29). This town was fast serving as the northern base for his ministry. In the previous visit Jesus full of the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:38) entered the town and announced the good news of the arrival of  the Kingdom of God and demonstrated his great power. He spoke with authority, cast out demons, cleansed lepers and healed diseases of every sort.  Things were happening not only at special places but also in homes, on the wayside, at the seashore, in the wilderness as in synagogues. They happened wherever there was faith. On that occasion  the whole city was at the door waiting for him. Therefore, when he returned, word went round  and people flocked to the house. Amazing things happen when Jesus is in the house.

The four men who carried their paralysed friend to Jesus for a miracle stood out  from the crowd.  Is it possible they were healed on previous occasions and their friend was left out when the whole town had been healed (Mark 1:32)?

The Men’s Determination

They were determined he would not miss out this time. What did they have to overcome?

>> A burden to carry. “…bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four.” Mark 2: 3b. It is not easy to carry a person who is so lifeless to help himself or herself. I once helped carry an uncle who was in what seemed to be a coma into an ambulance. It was difficult for three men.  We recovered in days and we did not have to carry him. Burdens are lifted at Calvary. When you carry them to him you won't need to carry them again.

>>Barriers to overcome.  “And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press” Mark 2: 4

>> The crowd. Because Jesus was in the house, the house was filled with people. The needy, the curious and the critics were all gathered in one place. Revival was in progress. The crowds came to be healed but also came to see him and to see what he would do. There was no room left not even by the door. The house was filled with anticipation. Everyone wondered what he would do next.  Many wondered if this was the political messiah would free Israel from occupation by the Romans. But for the four men it was not business as usual. They may have asked for access and were denied until they decided that extreme situations demanded extreme measures. The ones outside were more hungry for a miracle than the ones inside. The worst conditions were shut out by the ones inside.  In a hospital the worst cases, the babies and the old often jump the queue.

>> The covering. The roof needed to be uncovered. Going by the practice in those days, the house was most probably constructed with a flat roof and a set of stairs on the side of the house to access the roof. The roofing material would include timber, tree branches and thick layer of clay and mud pressed very hard to be rain proof.  Therefore, they had to dig until they made an opening large enough to lower their friend into the house.

>>The consequences. They must have wondered what would happen afterwards.  They dared to do the risky and costly. What if they were arrested? What if their reputation was damaged? Imagine the preaching is on and suddenly the sound of digging is heard on the roof. Before long dry mud and wood begin to fall on the crowd exposing the sky. Then a man is lowered into the room. What did the crowd think? What did Peter think? His house was being damaged before his very eyes. They might have had to pay for the cost of the repairs to Peter’s roof.

>> Barricades inside their own minds and attitudes. They had to overcome doubt and fear. They had to agree and cooperate with one another. They overcame selfishness and personal pride about appearing awkward by doing something unusual. They were willing to think outside the box.

The Response of Jesus

We know how Jesus responded. To Jesus, houses, pigs, sabaths and laws were made for people and not people for them. People were made for God alone. Whatever cannot be sacrificed to save lives is an idol. 

>> He was tender to him.  He saw nothing else but faith and probably smiled. “When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.” (Mark 2: 5). Jesus sees faith before anything else. Faith is rejection of sin. That is why it pleases God (Hebrews 11:6).  Faith redefined his relationship.  He addressed him as ‘son’.  You cannot believe so much as to pull down a roof and still hold on to sin. He welcomed him into the family.

Ref to Luke 15 and 2 Samuel 9.

>> He brought attention to the root cause of suffering. He was already preaching the word to them – on faith and repentance. His priority was to communicate the message of the kingdom not just to do miracles. His heart was on solving the basic need.  Many focused on miracles and missed the message. They snatched the bait and survived the hook. The man was brought to Jesus for healing but Jesus dealt with his sins. Jesus’ priority was to deal with sin. He is light that drives away darkness.  The greatest need in life is not a physical need but a spiritual one. Capernaum missed this truth. It was here that he displayed great healing power. It was here that he preached in power. It was here that he made his public claims to be the messiah. Yet later despite all the miracles performed in this city Jesus pronounced a curse upon the city (Luke 10:13-15). They enjoyed the miracles and missed the message.  The message is so important that rather you go to heaven maimed than to die able bodied unsaved. Do not be like the people of Capernaum. Rather you go to hell from anywhere else other than from the pews of a bible believing church.

>> He baffled sceptics and critics (Mark 2: 6-10). He forgave sin. He taught the Pharisees that it was not just about knowing the law but also about life and sound relationship with God. He confronted his critics with truth. They focus on effects or symptoms while he addressed root causes. What you think in your heart can interfere with your prayer and relationship with God.  “some teachers of the law were sitting there thinking to themselves, why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (v. 6 -7).  He had authority on Earth to forgive sins. Jesus healed the man to demonstrate he had power to forgive sin. He used the physical to prove the spiritual. For all the physical benefits from God there are spiritual lessons you cannot afford to miss.

>> He amazed all. He amazed everybody by healing the paralytic. “Insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.” Mark 2:12.  Jesus was associated with amazement not amusement.  He amazed everyone and baffled his critics.  Are you amazed, amused or baffled on your journey with Jesus?  May you never stop to be amazed.

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa 

Hanging out with Jesus VI: His Deep Compassion

Hanging out with Jesus VI:  His Deep Compassion

Mark 1:39 – 45

Compassion is the very thing that moved Jesus from heaven. Compassion is what tenderizes hears to be touched by human plights. It kept Jesus on the cross and moved him to the throne. He felt for people enough to touched by them and tirelessly serve them. That motivated his ministry. The high counts of words like immediately, forthwith, straightway and straightly in the book of Mark are testimony of the swiftness with which he responded to needs.  His instant obedience was matched by immediate results.  To be a disciple maker with Jesus one has to have the essential element of compassion for people. Being a disciple is growing in compassion. One has to catch the compassionate heart of God. . It is a divine attribute that rubs on to you when you spend time in God’s presence.

Compassion was the key to his influence. Influence is the key to leading. Compassion generates cooperation. Compassion is concern, kindness, and sympathy that evokes involvement or action. When one who is kind and merciful acts to address the need of concern, compassion is at work. Mercy breads bonding and loyalty. Mercy was a bridge that opened hearts of people to him. Mercy is what transforms us as we follow him. It is the key to lead people out of darkness and make them fervent worshiper, win souls, make disciples, move mountains, create wealth, world changers, build legacy.

Because he was compassionate Jesus:

         Paid attention to the needy. His work is associated with the sick being healed, lepers cleansed, the gospel heard and the down cast uplifted. He had time for the least, lowest, last and lost (Luke 4:18, 1 Corinthians 1:6). We live in a world that has lost its moral compass and the result is much suffering and pain.

         Paid attention to the one. He afforded time for the one within the crowd. His encounters with individuals such as the centurion, and blind Bartimaeus make Jesus reachable to us at a personal level. His care for individuals opened the hearts of crowds. The result was a sweeping awakening as the good news spread like a wild fire.  What we learn is that mercy gives influence. It resulted in an unstoppable momentum evidenced by excitement, energy, drive and impetus. Not driven by one person.

Mark 1:28  And immediately his fame spread abroad throughout all the region round about Galilee.

Mark 1:32- 33  And at even, when the sun did set, they brought unto him all that were diseased, and them that were possessed with devils. And all the city was gathered together at the door.

Mark 1:45  But he went out, and began to publish it much, and to blaze abroad the matter, insomuch that Jesus could no more openly enter into the city, but was without in desert places: and they came to him from every quarter.

         Paid attention to the outcasts like the woman with an issue of blood (Mark 5:25) and transformed worst of sinners like the woman who anointed his feet (Luke 7:37). 

         Paid attention to the lowly for a reward in heaven. Most of the people that thronged him were have-nots. His teachings and stories brought hope to the poor. Almost as if he favoured the poor.

         Paid attention to the hard things that stretched him (Mathew 26:39). He was willing to pay the highest price to show compassion. Go went where God instructed and did what God told him to do. He did not seek to do just hat was easy, comfortable or celebrated. That is why he valued personal growth before trying to grow multitudes. As a result he was a climber, upstream swimmer, and a driver not a drifter.

         Paid attention to the few. He selected the twelve disciples who were with him. Through the few he reached not only masses but generations. Through them he  now has millions around him where he used to have five thousand. He is now preaching to billions.

         Jesus was accessible 24/7.   He allowed people to interrupt his rest time (Mark 6:34). The people pushed him to seek places of  rest and pursued him there. He still out of compassion ministered to them. Although He rules the universe we have access to His throne 24/7. He is a King who calls us friends yet is worthy of our eternal worship. All for our welfare, he rules in righteousness and love. He will never falter, never fail, never make a bad decision and never lose a battle.

         Jesus followed the wildernesses in people and on the map.  Chapter 1 ends with message back in wilderness. Earlier a voice was crying in the wilderness. He went to the wilderness and brought the message to the city because he heard the cry in the wilderness in people’s hearts not just the one on the map.  That wilderness is still crying for a voice (Isaiah 35: 1-15)

Three things:  

Mar 1:40 – 41   And there came a leper to him, beseeching him, and kneeling down to him, and saying unto him, If thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus, moved with compassion, put forth his hand, and touched him, and saith unto him, I will; be thou clean.

>>He was willing. What he has promised indicates his will. You ONLY come in humility and faith like this man did.  The leper was so happy he made it the only obstacle he thought was his willingness.  Like the lame brought through the roof… he doesn’t lecture them about respect for property and dignified behavior.  Jesus did not ask … how did you manage to come near us with your leprosy? During recent Xenophia attacks in South Africa, the Minister of Home Affairs  said, ‘we are not worried about whether the people have papers or not but to make sure lives are safe.’

>> He  touched a leper.  Moved with compassion he was touched by his need and plea so much that he touched him. He touched him even though he was unclean, and untouchable. Touching is identifying with. When people brought sacrifices for their sins the person touched the animal to set it aside as his/her representative. When he touched the leper he identified with him.

>> He cleansed him. He brought transformation to his life. His condition had been worse than that of the sick. He needed not just healing but cleansing. Always he would warn people  by shouting ‘unclean’. But now he was no longer an outcast. He was no longer unclean. He was  integrated back into society. It is possible to  be healed but carry a stigma. He was cleansed of the stigma. Mercy is considerate. He told him go and get checked and get professional certification as a testimony (Mark 1:44).

Mark 1:39  And he preached in their synagogues throughout all Galilee, and cast out devils.

Mark 1:42 - 44  And as soon as he had spoken, immediately the leprosy departed from him, and he was cleansed. And he straitly charged him, and forthwith sent him away; And saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man: but go thy way, shew thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing those things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. 

Each time he told them not to publish what God had done for them, the more they published. You almost want to remind him not to bother stopping them. Why would he give such a futile instruction? The only reason was for us to know that when God does wonders in people’s lives they just cannot stop shouting about it. Not even when he charges them not to.

Message by Dr. Kurai Chitima.

Faith Ministries – Johannesburg Faith Life Center.

Ground and First Floors Sunset Bay Building,

204B Bram Fischer drive,

Randburg, Johannesburg, South Africa