Leading or Distracting?

During the worship, members of the congregation brought scriptures and words from God, including one on how God wants to build character in us – face testing circumstances but trust God and He will bring strong character out in us as He helps us to overcome.

Continuing the sermon series in Mark, Pete H_ spoke on Mark 3:7 – 30
1) Great multitudes travelled from miles around to see Jesus
2) The ordinary was made extraordinary by Jesus
3) There is only one way to salvation: Jesus

1) The passage says 'a great multitude' (a multitude is 'a great number' so a great multitude …?) came from miles around – if you check out a map, one of the places people are reported to have travelled from is Idumea, which was probably up to 100 miles away. Bear in mind they would have taken days to reach Jesus without our modern modes of transport. Consider the reasons they came – the passage mentions those who were sick, and he healed them. Word had evidently got out that Jesus healed people – news of His miracles had spread far and wide. Pete asked us to consider the question 'Am I leading people to Jesus or distracting them away?'

2) The ordinary made extraordinary.
Pete put up some pictures – Spiderman, Superman and Batman – and asked us to suggest what factors makes one of these superheroes different from the other two. Answers included their origins: Superman was from another planet, and had super powers from birth; Spiderman only had special powers after being bitten by a spider, and Batman had no special powers but was super-rich and a life-changing event made him choose to adopt his Super-hero persona. The 12 disciples Jesus chose were ordinary guys when he called them. They responded to Jesus' call – they said 'Yes' when he called them to follow him, and Jesus gave them power and authority to carry out the mission he gave them. They still didn't have all the answers – still had questions – but they were chosen by Jesus, they responded when he called them, and he equipped them and sent them out to do extraordinary things.

3) Jesus is the only way to salvation, the only answer to sin.
Some people call this passage 'the unforgiveable sin' – and may get hung up on the idea that they have committed an unpardonable offence. Pete offered the reassurance that if you fear you may have committed an unpardonable sin, the chances are you haven't. The Bible is clear that Jesus' work of atonement is the answer to all sin – you only need to acknowledge that you've sinned and ask forgiveness, put your trust in Jesus and you are forgiven and redeemed, your sin atoned for. Just as in the story of the prodigal son, where the father sees the son a long way off and runs to meet him, God's father heart is already inclined to receive you the moment you turn back to Him.

John F_ invited people to respond, to come forward if they wanted to respond to Jesus' call for the first time, if they wanted prayer for healing, or if they wanted to become extraordinary for God.