Introduction

 

About 8 years ago … I had the unenviable job of hiring an assistant minister.  The reason I say ‘unenviable’ is because … as bad as it can get when there’s friction between a minister and their congregation … that gets turned up to 11 when there’s friction within the ministry staff.  So you want to get that decision right.  And for that reason I prayed to God … quite intensely … asking Him to send me 1 stand-out candidate.  Why?  ‘Because’ … I said … ‘if you send me 2 … I’ll just pick the wrong one’.

Well I interviewed about 8 guys … and out of those guys … God sent me TWO standout candidates.  Thank you God.  And out of those 2 … 1 was WAY better on paper.  He’s a well-known youth minister here in Sydney … with over 8 years of experience.  The other had 18 months of experience … AND his boss at the time had asked him to leave … due to friction within the ministry team.  Well Tamara and I … Tamara was our children’s worker at the time … had a second interview with them both.  And we were BOTH hoping the guy with 18 months experience would just tank the interview … to make my decision easier.  Instead … he nailed it.  Every question we asked … the guy with 8 years’ experience talked about himself … whereas the guy with 18 months experience talked about God … and how awesome God is.

Now the WHOLE experience was so stressful to me that my back threw out.  And while I weas laid out on the couch … I rang Tamara and said ‘surely we go for the guy that looks good on paper … NOT the guy who’s currently being fired from his job’.  And Tamara asked me a very simple question.  She said ‘what are we on about here?’  Can anyone answer that by the way?  Does anyone know our Vision Statement?  What we’re on about here … is delighting in God.  And Tamara’s simple question sealed it for me.  So we hired JD … the guy who LOOKED terrible on paper … but turned out to be an amazing minister … and went on to became a good friend.

The reason I tell that story is because our sermon today is titled ‘Jesus’ Ministry’.  And it’s titled that because our passage today … shows us what Jesus is on about … how Jesus ran his ministry.  So … we’re in the opening chapters of Mark’s gospel this term.  And what we’ve seen so far is that after introducing John the Baptist … in the opening 8 verses … and after Jesus’ baptism and temptation in the wilderness … Mark gets straight into Jesus’ ministry.  We’re told:

• Jesus travelled around Galilee … preaching the evangelion … the good news.

• He preached sermons in the synagogues … the Jewish churches

• He cast out demons, and

• He healed people.

Yet he didn’t just heal SOME people.  He pretty much healed an entire town in 1 night.  And that 1 night … made Jesus go viral … which tends to happen when you can cure all demons, death and disease.  So Jesus went from being a nobody … to THE A-List celebrity of his day … overnight.  And this newfound fame leaves Jesus with a big question.  What am I on about?  What is my ministry going to be about?  What is my VISION Statement?  And that’s what we’re looking at today.  This passage is a microcosm of Jesus’ ministry … showing us what Jesus was on about.

And it just so happens that Jesus is on about 3 things … which is very convenient for my usual 3-point sermon.  And those 3 things are … Jesus is (i) A man of prayer … v. 35-37, (ii) A man of the word … v. 38-39 … and (iii) A man of action … v. 40-45.  So please come with me … as we look at what Jesus was on about with his ministry … with the view to emulating that ourselves.

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A man of prayer (v. 35-37)

 

Now … like I said … Jesus’ actions in last week’s passage have just shot him to stardom overnight.  When people found out he had supernatural powers … everyone wanted an appointment with him.  So … what do people generally do … when they become super-famous?  Like imagine a Christian minister whose church explodes numerically.  Before he knows it … he’s gone from a church of a hundred or so … to a church of a several thousand.  WHEN that Christian minister becomes really busy … what do you think is the FIRST thing that he DROPS in life … to make time for all his new appointments?  It’s not family.  That usually goes second.  Health usually goes third.  The FIRST thing ministers drop … is prayer.

When I was interviewing all those assistant ministers years ago … every single one of them spent only 5-10 minutes a day in prayer.  All except JD … who spent 45 minutes a day with God.  I told him if he got the job … he needed to double that.  But even Anglican Ministers generally have terrible prayer times.  They’re just too busy to pray.  So let’s have a look at what Jesus did the moment he became really famous and therefore really busy:

Mark 1:35 (NIV) Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.

Now if someone were to ring you at 5am for a chat … my guess is your response would be ‘what are you doing ringing me at this ungodly hour!’  I’ve always maintained it’s a sin for Christians to be up at 5am … because it’s an UNGODLY hour … right.  Not Jesus.  Yet as impressive as that is … getting up before sunrise to pray … what’s REALLY impressive is how long he prayed for.  Listen to this:

Mark 1:36-37 (NIV) Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”

Now let’s do the sums here.  If Jesus got up before sunrise … we’re talking about 5am.  If the disciples got up AT sunrise … that’s about 6am … right.  But probably a bit later.  Then once they realise Jesus isn’t home … where would they go first?  They’d probably search the town … right … which would take at least an hour or so.  Only THEN would they think ‘hey … if he’s not here … then maybe he’s gone out to the desert.  But they have 360 degrees of desert to search.  So by the time the disciples FIND Jesus … he’s probably been praying for somewhere between 3-6 hours.

Now WHY is this?  WHY … after becoming uber-famous … and therefore uber-busy … would Jesus take 3-6 hours out of his day for prayer?  It’s because Jesus knows something we don’t.  And that is … the BUSIER you get … the MORE you need prayer.  Martin Luther is famously quoted as saying ‘I have SO MUCH to do today … that I shall spend the first 3 hours in prayer’.

And so the FIRST thing this passage teaches us about what Jesus was on about … is that he was a man of prayer.  He didn’t even let SLEEP get in the way of spending long periods of time … talking with his heavenly Father.  And so if WE are going to emulate our Lord and Saviour in what WE’RE on about here at Earlwood Anglican … then we need to be men and women of prayer.

Now this doesn’t mean spending 3-6 hours a day in prayer.  As a minister … I have the same kind of privilege Jesus had … in that I get PAID to spend time with God.  But MOST of us here have jobs we spend 8-9 hours at each day … as well as travel, family time and sleep.  So the application for v. 35-37 is NOT go and spend 3-6 hours in prayer each day … you’ll be relieved to know.

But we DO need to be intentional.  Brothers and sisters … no one ever stumbled into a rich prayer life by accident.  The kind of prayer life Jesus models here … means being intentional in setting aside time to pray.  OK … if you ONLY pray when you think about it … if you ONLY shoot up little arrow prayers throughout the day … when something comes to mind … that’s not a rich prayer life.  That’s fitting God into your busy schedule.  Jesus … fit his busy schedule around his time with God.  So here’s my application for point 1.  To become a man or woman of prayer …

1. Choose a time tomorrow when you KNOW you have a spare 15, 20 … even 30 minutes.  And if you don’t HAVE a spare 20-30 minutes in the 16 odd hours you’re awake tomorrow … then get up 20-30 minutes earlier.  Jesus did.

2. Before you spend that time with God … pray and ask God to help you enjoy that 20-30 minutes SO MUCH … that you’ll WANT to come back again the next day.

3. Read a chapter or 2 of the Bible … then get on your knees for the rest.

Friends … may we NOT be the kind of Christians who think we’re too busy to pray.  May we instead emulate Jesus … and KNOW we’re too busy NOT to pray.

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A man of the word (v. 38-39)

 

So … that’s Jesus … the man of prayer.  WHEN the disciples finally find Jesus … we read this:

Mark 1:38 (NIV) Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”

The REASON Jesus was so eager to pray … is because he’s reached a watershed moment in his ministry … and he wants to commune with his heavenly Father over it.  He’s just spent an entire night healing people and casting out demons.  And according to Luke’s account of this episode … the whole town of Capernaum was eager to have Jesus stay WITH them … so he could keep doing miracles FOR them.  And so Jesus has an important question to answer here.  What am I on about?  What have I come to do?  Now as our regulars will know … the reason Jesus came to earth was to die for our sins … right?  But that’s the end point of his ministry.  The question Jesus is asking HERE … at the BEGINNING of his ministry … is what do I want my earthly ministry to be about?  Do I want to be a miracle worker … or a teacher?  This is a watershed moment.

Now being a miracle worker would be great.  You get to heal people … and you get to see the smiles on their faces.  Being a teacher on the other hand … means having people oppose you … as you tell them they’re sinful.  But here’s the thing.  The fruit of a healing ministry is temporal … whereas the fruit of a teaching ministry is eternal.  And so that’s what Jesus’ focusses on.  Healing a person will last 40-50 years.  Teaching someone to repent and believe the good news … will still be paying dividends in 40-50 billion years.  So the SECOND thing this passage teaches us about what Jesus was on about … is he was a man of the word.  His primary focus in his ministry was teaching God’s word.

And friends … can I just say … this is the BEST thing about Earlwood Anglican.  If you’ll permit me a quick aside here … there are many things that make this church a really good church.  Now if I were to list them all … we’d be here until midnight.  So let me give you the top 5 things I love about this church.

5. We LOVE being here.  I estimate that each Sunday we’re missing about 10-15% of our regulars.  MOST churches are missing more like 20-30%.  The majority of us LOVE being here … so we turn up every Sunday.

4. We LOVE hanging out with each other.  I visited my home church a few years back … and the place was a ghost town 30 minutes after the service.  Most weeks HERE … I’m kicking people out 1 ½ hours after the service.  We just love one another’s company here.

3. I LOVE our hospitality.  Now this no doubt has a lot to do with the ethnic connections in our church … Greeks, Italians, Maltese, Portuguese, Phillipinos, Indigenous, you name it.  Please do not discount the enormous impact our ethnic diversity has on our church … in particular in our food.

2. We are an incredibly welcoming church.  There was an article in last month’s Southern Cross about how to be a welcoming church.  And I was thrilled to see that we do ALL of the things that welcoming churches do … and NONE of the things that unwelcoming churches do.  Visitors are ALWAYS well looked after at our church.

Now this is not to say we’re a PERFECT church.  Like the saying goes … if you ever FIND the perfect church … whatever you do … don’t join it.  You’ll just ruin it.  There is always room for improvement as a church.  But we’ve built a really good culture here in recent years.

1. And the BEST bit of our culture … which was here before I arrived … is we are men and women of the word.  I am constantly amazed that you sit and listen to me for over 25 minutes every Sunday.  I’m NOT a great preacher.  If I was a great preacher … I’d be getting invited to speak at conferences.  I’m just an average Sunday preacher.  Yet you give me your full attention every Sunday.  On top of that … I estimate that close to 90% of our congregation are in Bible Study groups or youth group.  Again … the average church probably has more like 60-70%.  So the thing I love the most about our culture here … is that like Jesus … we are men and women of the word.

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A man of action (v. 40-45)

 

So … Jesus is a man of prayer … and he’s a man who has chosen to focus his ministry NOT on performing miracles … but on teaching the word.  He’s a man of the word.  And so AS Jesus goes out teaching the word … what’s the FIRST thing that happens to him?

Mark 1:40 (NIV) A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.”

Like … COME ON!  I just said … I’ve come to teach … like 1 verse ago.  And here’s a guy wanting to be healed.  Well before we get to what Jesus does … two quick things about this man with leprosy.

Firstly … the OT Law commanded that ANYONE with an infectious skin disease … like leprosy … had to live outside the city in a remote area.  And if anyone came near him … he had to cry out ‘unclean’ … so they would steer clear.  So not only is this poor guy falling apart physically … he was socially isolated as well.

But second … notice HOW he comes to Jesus.  He doesn’t say ‘you must do this thing for me’.  He says ‘if you are willing’.  What he means is … ‘I’m coming to YOU … but I’m not going to TELL you what I need.  I’m going to leave that decision up to you.  You see WHEN some people come to Jesus today … they come asking ‘look … IF I become a Christian … WILL that mean I’ll have to give up doing this … and start doing that?’  Now notice what they’re saying.  They’re saying ‘I’m interested in your power to change CERTAIN aspects of my life … but I’m not willing to change other aspects for you’.

But here’s the thing about Jesus.  If he really is who he said he was … then how can you possibly know what you really need in life … BEFORE you even get to know him?  OK … THIS is why Jesus focussed his ministry on teaching rather than healing.  You see a sick person KNOWS they need healing.  Most people don’t even KNOW they need to repent.  Yet this man is coming to Jesus … at least open to that possibility.  He’s not coming with conditions … or demands.  He simply says ‘if you are willing … you can make me clean’.  And we read:

Mark 1:41-42 (NIV) Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

Now the word ‘indignant’ means angry.  The most likely target of Jesus’ anger is the disease.  He’s upset that this poor man has to suffer.  And so Jesus does something about it.  He’s not just a man of words.  He’s a man of action.

James 2:15-16 (NIV) Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it?

Yes … we are to be men and women of the word.  But faithful Bible teaching is of ZERO use … if we don’t put it into practice.  And that’s what Jesus does here.  He’s a man of action.  Yet he doesn’t just heal him physically.  Why does Jesus touch him?  He doesn’t have to touch people to heal them.  It’s because Jesus isn’t just interested in his physical needs.  He’s interested in his emotional needs and spiritual needs as well.  This guy hasn’t felt physical touch in years.  So Jesus gives him even MORE than he's asking for.

And that’s what it means to be a man or woman of action.  It means caring for people’s physical needs … emotional needs … and spiritual needs … regardless of the cost.  I mean LOOK at what this healing cost Jesus.

Mark 1:43-44 (NIV) Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone.

Mark 1:45 (NIV) Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places.

Jesus’ actions meant the leper could LEAVE his life of seclusion.  But in doing so … Jesus was forced INTO a life of seclusion.  And this is of course how Jesus healed you and me as well.  He swapped places with us.  I’ve used this illustration before … but imagine a business man … who through poor business decisions … coupled with fraudulent practices … found himself M$100 in debt.  After selling all his assets … he still had a M$100 debt.  But then imagine Elon Musk comes along … who THIS week is worth B$348.  Yet instead of saying to this corrupt businessman ‘I’m going to pay for your debt out of my bank account’ … Elon says to him ‘I’m just going to swap bank accounts with you’.  You can have my B$348 … and I’ll take -M$100 … and start trying to pay it off with nothing else to my name.

Now what kind of a crazy person would do that?  Well … Jesus.  He took his infinite righteousness … and credited it to OUR spiritual account … while taking our sin … and putting it into his spiritual account … which he then paid off on the cross … making Jesus the ULTIMATE man of action.  And friends WHEN we see goodness like that … love like that … action like that … doesn’t it make us want to do the same for others?  Doesn’t it make us want to FIND ways that we can be men and women of action … just like our Lord and saviour was for us?

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Conclusion

 

Because THAT … brothers and sisters … is what Jesus was on about.  Now like I said at the beginning … what WE’RE on about here … is delighting in God.  And overall … that’s what Jesus was on about as well.  It’s the meaning of life … ‘to bring glory to God and enjoy him forever’.  But PART of how Jesus delighted in God … was he (i) delighted in having God’s ear … he was a man of prayer, he (ii) delighted in teaching God’s word … he was a man of the word, and he (iii) delighted in doing God’s work … he was a man of action.  And if we can make those 3 things part of how WE delight in God … then like v. 45 says … people will come from EVERYWHERE … to want to be a part of us.