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Teaching podcast from the Eagle Community Church of Christ in Mont Belvieu, TX.
Hi, friends. This is John Guenther at the Eagle Community Church of Christ. Thanks so much for listening to our podcast. You can check us out online at eaglechurchofchrist.com. This week, we're talking about Mark again.
John Gunter:We're talking about 4 different episodes where Jesus does some amazing miracles and shows his lordship over everything. How would we respond if we saw Jesus miracles? Well, let's see how the people who saw them respond. Again, we hope this is helpful. Come see us sometime.
John Gunter:We have had a fantastic journey, as we've begun the gospel of Mark. In Mark's words, and tradition says, through the experiences of Peter. We begin with, Mark chapter 1 and the gospel, the the good news of Jesus Christ as Lord. I don't know what you think about when you think if Jesus were to show up right now, would you be excited about that? Would you immediately reject all that he did?
John Gunter:You've read enough now, you've lived enough life as a Christian to know that it was not an easy road for him. We begin this morning with, 4 different scenarios that Mark shows us, 4 difficulties with different outcomes, and we're going to treat them as 4 different things. 1st, presenting the problem, then going back and examining kind of how they finished. And the first begins like this, in Mark chapter 4 and verse 35. On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, 'Let us go across to the other side.' And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat just as he was, and the other boats were with him.
John Gunter:And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion, and they woke him and said to him, teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? You can see by all the details that this seems to be written or at least given to given from someone who was there. All the boats were being filled. He was specifically in the stern, asleep on the cushion, and they are perishing.
John Gunter:You know they're perishing because remember who Jesus chose is his disciples. If you've ever seen a picture of the Sea of Galilee, the the Sea of Galilee is really in a in a basin. There are mountains all the way around it. And so Jesus, when he chose disciples that were fishermen, he chose really a a group of people that could he could utilize. Because to get from one side of the, the lake to the other was a very long journey, and it was still about 2 hours in a boat.
John Gunter:But when the fisherman who did this kind of thing for a living said, we are perishing, you know it had to be a bad storm. But notice, they come to Jesus and the accuser here, what they're accusing him of is, teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? Our first story today about the power of nature. Our second story from Mark 5 starting in verse 1, They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit.
John Gunter:He lived among the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. Do you see the problem that's set up? There's the power here of an unclean spirit, where everyone has tried and everyone has failed. I have never met a man who just rips out of chains, but if I did, I would be afraid too. How about you?
John Gunter:That is the issue here. It says, for he had often been bound with shackles and chains, but he wrenched the chains apart and he broke the shackles in pieces. No one had the strength to subdue him. Now, ladies, look around at the men you love. Every one of us thinks we're this strong.
John Gunter:We watch National Geographic or watch something, and we see a grizzly bear, and we you know what? With the right blow, we could probably take him. When we all know good and well, that bear wants to kill us. Their kid's gonna kill us. There's no chance.
John Gunter:But we feel like we are this strong. We have not actually encountered strength of this kind. Can you imagine if we saw that today, we would think, okay. Something's up. It's fake.
John Gunter:You know, it looks metal, but it has to be plastic. Right? But that's what they're encounter encountering. He had often been bound with these things and he just got out of them. It says, night and day among the tombs and on the mountains, he was always crying out and cutting himself with stones.
John Gunter:Nothing hurt him. You see what he's trying to say here? Nothing even hurt him. And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and fell down before him. I want you to notice, this is not in the way you might think initially.
John Gunter:And crying out with a loud voice, he said, what have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High? I adjure you by God. Do not torment me.' For he was saying to him, Come out of the man, you unclean spirit. It is not the man claiming Jesus as deity. It is the impure spirit recognizing Jesus' authority and power.
John Gunter:Notice how he even invoked the spirits, even invoked God in that moment. I assure you, by God, don't torment me. So in the first scenario, in the boat, in the storm, everyone said, it's hopeless and you don't even care that we're gonna die. In this scenario, so far, we have a man with overwhelming power and unclean spirits within him. And the unclean spirits see what the disciples in the boat did not see.
John Gunter:And that is Jesus has the authority and Jesus has the power. And the only option they have is to plead and say, Please, don't torment me, because we know you can, and we know you have the power. The 3rd episode today comes from Mark 5 starting in verse 21. And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea. Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus, by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet and implored him earnestly, saying, my little daughter is at the point of death.
John Gunter:Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live. You see the the progression, the things that are changing within each story. The first one on the, in the boat in the storm, nobody thinks Jesus can do anything. The second one, the impure spirit says, please don't, because I know you can. And all of a sudden, Jairus, Jairus, whatever his name is, falls down at Jesus' feet saying, my little daughter is at the point of death.
John Gunter:Come and lay your hands on her so that she may be made well and live. All of a sudden, there's belief. There's faith that Jesus can do something. It says, and he went with him. He said, while he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house, the same ruler, some who said, your daughter is dead.
John Gunter:Why trouble the teacher any further? Do you see? We've got faith and then all of a sudden there's a point that comes. We understand, or at least these people who came from his house, understood there's nothing else he can do. Back to hopelessness.
John Gunter:There's nothing else left. Sometimes, I think we approach death like that. Oh, man. They they die. There's nothing else left.
John Gunter:That's the that's the worst thing that could happen. I don't think so. But why trouble the teacher any further? It's already over. But overhearing what they said, notice this, Jesus hears that.
John Gunter:Jesus hears their concern. He hears their unbelief. He hears, okay, there's nothing else we can do. And Jesus says, do not fear, only believe. You don't hear anything else today?
John Gunter:Write that down and take it with you. Do not fear, only believe because we exist in a world, in a culture that thrives only on fear. Everything that you watch on TV, if you're watching the news, why aren't we talking about all the positive things? Because you won't watch that. But if you're afraid of something, you'll watch.
John Gunter:I I shared, I think, at one point, I I might have been in our bible class, but it's interesting in this season of political ads, being able to see these things through the eyes of a child. Logan came to me one day, and he said, you know, I'm worried about this because I saw an ad. I thought, what in the world do you see? And he said, well, I understand. They said on TV that if, who who was it?
John Gunter:It was, Yeah. If it was Ted Cruz if Ted Cruz gets if he wins this, he's gonna do some bad things to Texas. And he said, and I looked down there and it said it was paid for by Colin Allred. And I said, yeah. That's how they get you.
John Gunter:And Colin Allred has stuff paid for by Ted Cruz. Right? It's it's it's built out of fear. Both of them said and and so he was he was actually going back and forth. It's like, he he thought in that moment something, maybe very physically, was going to happen to all of us if a certain person became, you know, got that position, because that's what everything is based on.
John Gunter:We live our lives worried about things. Fear drives, fear sells, and that happens in church as well. Do not fear, only believe. Because if your your hope is placed on one of these people in these political ads, you're in trouble, by the way. You should fear.
John Gunter:But if your belief is in Christ, you have nothing to fear. You understand that, church? You don't have to worry about that. Jesus is in control. God has got you.
John Gunter:You understand that? Do not fear, only believe. So Jairus says, I want you to just lay your hands on her. But the people, when they understood that his daughter was dead, say, why even bother the teacher anymore? All is lost.
John Gunter:The 4th, and final, which happened right before what we just read, and a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. And there was a woman who had a discharge of blood for 12 years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. Great bunch of physicians, She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, if I touch even his garments, I will be made well. Do you do you hear the faith?
John Gunter:Jairus, if you just put your hands on her. This lady, though I've gone through so many things, that not only has she not gotten better, it says, she has grown worse. Boy, you wouldn't put that on a commercial, would you? Hey, I've treated this woman for 12 years and guess what? She's not even any better.
John Gunter:She's worse. Come see me down at the clinic. And we we live we live in a in a blessed time of of medical advancement, don't we? How many procedures would we have right here in this this little place that had we not been able to have them, had we not been able to have some of the testing, we would been a be in a much different position physically. It's it's kind of a crazy thing.
John Gunter:When I read, through the biography of George Washington, remember, you know, he gets sick and I thought, you know what? The only way to to make him better is to bleed him. Right? To make him weaker. But I really and we live in a blessed time, and so we think about this.
John Gunter:We think about all the ways maybe trying to figure out what she had and try to adjust it, but no. She lived in a time where she just had to try everything she could, she lost a lot of money doing it, she grown even worse. She said, I know if I touch Jesus, even even the the hem of his garment, if I just touch his garments, I will be made well. Faith in this scenario. We go back to, the sea.
John Gunter:Said, but he was in the stern again, asleep on the cushion, and he woke him up and said, teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? And I know when we read that initially, because we know the rest of the story, we may have a tendency to think, oh, they had faith. Well, keep reading here. It says, and he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, peace, be still, and the wind ceased. Wouldn't you like to say that?
John Gunter:What would happen if that happened in your lifetime? That you were on a boat and this kind of power was shown? I would like to think instant faith and instant belief. Is that what happened? So the wind ceased and there was a great calm and he said to them, why are you so afraid?
John Gunter:Have you still no faith?' And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, 'Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? They didn't think for a second he could do anything about this. You see that? They didn't think for a second. When they asked him and said, hey, do you not care that we are dying here?
John Gunter:It wasn't would you get up and calm this thing. It was you don't you you just don't care. And so when he does this, when he calms the storm, they go, oh, who is this? What is this about that this could even happen? And all of a sudden, okay, maybe I ought to reconsider.
John Gunter:Maybe I ought to have a light bulb go off. Our second episode, And Jesus asked him, what is your name?' Again, the man with the unclean spirit. My name is Legion, for we are many. And he begged him earnestly not to send him out of the country. Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him saying, send us to the pigs.
John Gunter:Let us enter them. And there's something in scripture about these desolate places. That's where a lot of times these things reside, but they don't want to. It's it's it's odd thing to kind of wrap your head around. They don't wanna be sent out somewhere.
John Gunter:They want to inhabit something. Do you remember the story about, you know, if you clean clean up your life, you better fill it with something or it's gonna be come back worse? Yeah. The same kind of thing. They don't want to be in the desolate places.
John Gunter:They want to inhabit something. So we want to go into the pigs. Okay? And it says, the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs and the herd numbering about 2,000, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea. The herdsmen fled and told him in the city and in the country, and people came to see what it was that had happened.
John Gunter:And they came to Jesus and saw the demon possessed man, the one who had the Legion, sitting there clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. Now, why were they afraid? He's not ripping chains in half anymore. He's not screeching. He's not cutting himself, but only sitting there in his right mind.
John Gunter:And they became afraid, I think, because of the power that they saw Jesus had. Well, if he does that, what in the world? Now some of it might have been related to 2,000 pigs just dying. I don't know. But, certainly, something with the power that Jesus showed that all of a sudden that this man that they had known for a long time been afraid of, I'm sure, avoided the tombs.
John Gunter:Wouldn't you? Your kids go out to play. Hey. Remember, don't go by the tombs. Crazy guys out there.
John Gunter:But they were afraid. And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon possessed man and to the pigs, and they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region. So their response is, Jesus, would you leave? We'd like to think that our response would be acceptance and follow him, and their response was, would you get out of here, please? Because that's a problem.
John Gunter:Right? The 2,000 pigs, especially, is a problem. Something's going on. I don't know if we can handle this. It's almost it seems like their response is, we don't know if we can handle this.
John Gunter:It says in verse, 18 here, and he was getting into the boat. The man who had been possessed with demons begged him that he might be with him. Do you see the difference in response? All the other people can't wrap their minds around it. You need to get out of here.
John Gunter:The man whose life was changed by this said, can I go with you? Because he knew what it was about, didn't he? He knew what his life was before. He knew what it was now. Can you imagine that?
John Gunter:Can I go with you? And he did not permit him, but said to him, go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you. And how he has had mercy on you. And he went away and began to proclaim to the decapulists how much Jesus had done for him, and everyone marveled. Now, this is a different scenario because most of the time, you remember when Jesus heals someone, he looks at him and says, don't tell anybody.
John Gunter:Remember that? And we go, why wouldn't you tell anybody? You know, I think every single time they do anyway. Right? But in this moment, Jesus is not around Jerusalem.
John Gunter:Remember, he's across the lake, in a different country. And at this moment, he says, you go tell, and he did. He didn't have any issue. He didn't say, I'm an introvert. You know, Jesus, I don't I'd rather not.
John Gunter:And he didn't say, you know, I'm I'm not a good speaker. He went because he had seen what Jesus had done for him, for his life, and his faith said, I'm gone. And he does that. And everyone marveled. How many of us could share stories about what Jesus has done for our lives?
John Gunter:And bring others to him. Yet, we have said, no, not comfortable with that. I'm not the one. I hope somebody else does. We don't have that faith.
John Gunter:We say we have faith, but we don't have the faith that actually has us go, that has us tell. And the third one again, while he was still speaking, there came from the ruler's house someone who said, your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further? But Jesus again said, overhearing this, says, do not fear, only believe. And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John, the brother of James.
John Gunter:They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. When he had entered, he said to them, why are you making a commotion and weeping?' Now if I was around Jesus this moment, I would be so literal. I said, Jesus, do you not know this this girl is dead. Right? Why are you making such a commotion, and weeping?
John Gunter:The child is not dead but sleeping. And they laughed at him. How many of you would have laughed at him? Just be honest. Yeah.
John Gunter:You know you would. They laughed at him, but he put them all outside and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. So Jesus makes a medical diagnosis, or maybe a spiritual one, without even having seen the child. She's not dead, only sleeping. And then he goes in.
John Gunter:Do you catch that? Where the child was. Taking her by the hand, he he said to her, talitha kum. Which means, little girl, I say to you, arise. And immediately the girl got up and began walking, for she was 12 years of age.
John Gunter:And they were immediately overcome with amazement. And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat. Now how in the world do you have a kid that died and Jesus brought him back and he says, don't tell anybody? Now what about all those people he just sent out of the house? What what are they gonna say?
John Gunter:Right? It's almost like, okay. Well, now is not his time. Don't say anything. But what Jesus does is so powerful that there's no way you can't share it.
John Gunter:Can you imagine? How many of you have kids in here? If that happened? You tell everybody you saw. Absolutely.
John Gunter:Right? I would absolutely do that, and Jesus puts the restraints on. Don't don't tell anybody about that. I almost wonder if we should take Jesus literally or if he had a little smirk and a twinkle in his eye when he said it. Right?
John Gunter:Because how would you not? But what he's dealing with is people that didn't have faith. And for whatever reason, people kept trying to trap him, people kept trying to get him. And remember, when he talks about parables, he says, you know, I say things in parables, so seeing they may not see here and they may not understand because if they don't want to, they won't. And it doesn't matter.
John Gunter:It doesn't matter whether you do something like this, you tell a parable that that tells about the kingdom of God or you produce a miracle. Remember, because they've already accused Jesus of the way he can cast out impure spirits is by the power of Satan. You're in league with Satan. You're on Satan's team. Team Satan, go.
John Gunter:Right? That's what they've said. They've tried to make an excuse for everything that he's done. When he healed on the Sabbath, they weren't amazed by the healing as much as they were upset that he healed on the wrong day. Right?
John Gunter:And let's make a big deal out of that and let's try to kill him. And so that's what he was fighting against. And so when he said this kind of thing, I think what he meant was, they're not gonna believe either way. They don't care enough to believe, so just don't tell anybody. For she said, if I touch even his garments back to the woman with the issue of blood.
John Gunter:For if I touch even his garments, I will be made well. And immediately, the flow of blood dried up and she felt in her body as she was healed of her disease. I don't know what that felt like, but I can only imagine relief. Because it had been so long. It had been an issue for her day in, day out.
John Gunter:You ever had something that just lingered with you? Like, I just know I get up in the morning, I'm gonna have this pain. And it's been with me. I remember oh, I can't remember when it started, doctor. It's been with me so long.
John Gunter:That's the only thing I can think of with this is all she felt was relief. I know this is over. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, which I'd love to know more about, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, who touched my garments? And the disciples being keen observers as they were, said, do you see the crowd pressing around you and yet you say, who touched me? Crazy guy?
John Gunter:Right? That's what they're doing. There's sarcasm all in this. If you don't read sarcasm in this, I'm sorry. This is this is a funny thing that he they said.
John Gunter:They're saying, alright. You know, you're at a concert. Anybody been to the concert? Been a long time that you've been at 1? Yeah.
John Gunter:And you ever seen the crowd that gets in the middle? And I'm thinking a lot of times, I'll get on the outside just so I don't have to be in that. And that's what the disciples say. Do you see all these people and you're asking us who touched you? How do we know?
John Gunter:Right? How how in the world do we know? So he looked around to see who had done it, but the woman knowing what had happened to her came in fear and trembling. She thought she was in trouble, I think. And fell down before him and told him the whole truth.
John Gunter:And he said to her, daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace and be healed of your disease. Your faith has made you well. She came in fear and trembling. Right before that, she had come in faith believing, if I just get my hands on him, I believe he's going to heal me.
John Gunter:And he did. I don't know what she thought Jesus was gonna do to her. What he was gonna say, you know, did you steal the power? I don't know. But she at least stayed there and and told him the story, and he says, go in peace.
John Gunter:Your faith has made you well. How many times in life do you, like these other stories, think there's no hope and so there's no reason to pray, there's no reason to trouble the teacher? How many of you have not prayed about something because you've said something like, well, God's got more important issues. Have you prayed that? I hear it all the time as a minister.
John Gunter:Well, my issue's not that bad. You know, let's, let's let God handle some of these other things. God cares about you. Don't accuse Him, like they did in the boat, of, Do you not even care that we are dying? Because He does care, and He shows you over and over and over that he cares about you, that he wants to heal you and make you whole.
John Gunter:Where's your faith in that? Sometimes we pray for doctors, I think we should, but is all of our hope only in doctors? Or is it in the great physician? Right? I think we live in a wonderful time with, medical advancements, and we should pray for those people in those hands.
John Gunter:I have, here because we've met our out of pocket deductible, I've been through so many tests. I may be the bionic man at this point. I don't know. They haven't replaced any parts that I know of. But I have had wonderful care.
John Gunter:And we ought to pray for those people, but God is the great physician. Have faith in him. I feel like if I could only draw close, I would be healed. Jesus said, Your faith has made you well. So what would your response be had you seen all of these things?
John Gunter:Because his disciples were right there with him. What would be your response had you witnessed all of these things? Would you be would you go out into the world and be a witness for him, or would you be skeptical? Oh, we live in a time of insane skepticism. Everything has a reason.
John Gunter:We wanna see behind the curtain. The magician has a sleight of hand, and you can find real quick on YouTube how they did it, and we really wanna know. As church people, I think we we we see ourselves in a better light. We want to anyway, that I I believe I would be changed by that. I think I would follow him.
John Gunter:I think I would tell others about him, but would you really? In the next chapter, in in chapter 6 starting at verse 1, it says, Jesus went away from there and came to his hometown. His disciples followed him. And on the Sabbath, he began to teach in the synagogue and many who heard him were astonished saying, where did this man get these things? Do you see this?
John Gunter:Jesus has shown over and over and over that he has a power and he has an authority that comes from God, and still the question is, where does he get these things? Who taught him? Because the the normal thing was I grow up and I go through school, and remember, the the best and the brightest go further and even better than that, ends up under a rabbi being taught, and we know that's not him. Where did he get such things? What is the wisdom given to him?
John Gunter:How are such mighty works done by his hands? That guy. Right? I'm looking down because I know who he is. It says, is not this the carpenter?
John Gunter:Do you see this? Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? Are not his sisters here with us? And they took offense at him. They said, we know who he is, and he's not that kind of guy.
John Gunter:That's not the right family. That's not the right person. He didn't follow a rabbi. How did he get this wisdom? How did he get this teaching?
John Gunter:How are things done by his hands? As if his hands were the as human hands were the issue at, you know, at play here. And Jesus said to them, a prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household. He said, I get no respect. That's Rodney Dangerfield, isn't it?
John Gunter:I get no respect. Younger people, you have to go look that up on YouTube. Okay? The older people are all nodding their head. I get no respect.
John Gunter:A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and among his relatives and his own household. And he could do no mighty work there except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. You see what it's saying there. Because of this lack of belief, this lack of faith, Jesus was only able to heal a few people. Remember, he told the woman, your faith because of your faith, you have been healed.
John Gunter:Your faith has healed you. With a lack of faith, with a lack of belief, Jesus only did a few things. I don't know how all of that worked. It almost feels like you've seen any of those Santa Claus movies where people didn't have the Christmas spirit, so the sleigh wouldn't fly. You've seen those?
John Gunter:That's almost what it sounds like. Right? Didn't have enough belief, so he couldn't generate the past. Almost what I I think about it. Maybe that'll help you remember this.
John Gunter:That he only was able to lay his hands on a few and heal them, and he marveled because of their unbelief. And he went about among the villages teaching. Because it didn't matter what Jesus did, whether he showed the power over nature, whether He showed power over impure spirits that had hold of someone, whether He showed power over sickness and even death, they still did not believe. Maybe that's you this morning. Maybe it's not all the way you, as we give ourselves the benefit of the doubt, but maybe you haven't given your whole self to Christ.
John Gunter:That you're kind of a toe in the water type of person. You know, I believe sometimes, and a lot of times that what that means to us is I believe when things are going my way. But what I'm gonna ask you this morning is just to give your life to Christ. Whom and if you've already been baptized and you want the the prayers of this church, you want encouragement from the people in this room right now to help you walk that walk, you will receive it. Let us know, and we will pray.
John Gunter:We will wrap our arms around you. We will walk side by side with you. If you haven't begun that walk with him, what's gonna convince you? Is it gonna take a miracle? Because that's what they asked Jesus for over and over despite the times when he did it and they still did not believe.
John Gunter:What is it in the way of your faith today? Because I'm just gonna ask you, believe in him. Put Christ on in baptism today and begin that walk with him. Would you do that as we stand and as we sing?