Pastor Marty Wednesday, August 13, 2014 at 4:06PM This week our Youth Pastor, Nick Hauenstein, preached a sermon about the Christian response to persecution. At this time it is only available in audio form. Click the following link to listen.
Pastor Marty Tuesday, August 5, 2014 at 1:29PM Today we are going to look at the passage in Luke 9:37-45. Jesus, Peter, John and James are coming down the mountain the day after the transfiguration of Jesus, in which his majesty and glory were revealed to the Three. If you add that situation with all of the other signs and wonders they had seen, the power of Christ was well impressed upon them. In this passage there is another powerful encounter as Jesus casts a demon out of a boy. This kind of power can cause people to drool over all the imagination of what you can do. Whether it is the people of Israel ready to conquer the Romans and remove the wicked leaders in the Sanhedrin or the disciples imagining their positions of power alongside of Jesus, we would not use such power for the same thing Jesus did.
Yes, Jesus healed people everywhere he went. But, that wasn’t his main objective. Jesus physically couldn’t fix all the difficulties in the world limited within a human body. But even if he did go around healing people and setting them free from evil spirits, it wouldn’t fix the underlying problem: our sin. Jesus was sent to deal with the root of mankind’s problem. We are a world that has come under the sway of sin and spiritual death. Such a problem needs a spiritual answer. Yet, that answer is counter-intuitive to our worldly thinking. Even when we accept Christ’s death on the cross, we tend to see it as an example of how bad hatred is and how good love is. Jesus is merely an example. However, the testimony of Scripture is that he was paying the price for the sins of mankind. Jesus had to lay down his powerful life and die on a cross in order to deal with our sin. This seems like a waste of power to many people.
In verses 37-42, a large crowd sees Jesus coming down off the mountain and meets him. Particularly, there is one gentleman who has a demon possessed boy. He begs Jesus for help and states that his disciples (the nine who did not go up the mountain) couldn’t cast out the demon.
Now in the gospel of Mark chapter 9 we are given a lot more detail than Luke gives. Let me go through some of those details. We are told that the boy has been possessed since he was a small child. The spirit had caused him to become mute and deaf. The spirit would often seize the boy near fire or water, thus endangering his life. He would not only seize, but would also foam and gnash his teeth. It would be easy to scoff at the idea of a demon and look at these descriptions as antiquated relics of ignorance. Of course medically we do know much more. However, they had medicine back then as well. Even today, there are incidents that modern medicine have problem explaining. They typically get thrown under the banner of “mental disorders.” Now not all mental issues have to do with demons. However, there are three main problems that crop up in some mental issues. The first is that the mention of Jesus or Scripture triggers events of seizure and difficulty in some. Secondly, they sometimes speak in a different voice cursing Christ, the Bible, and Christians. Lastly, it can be brought to the end at a vocal command through the power of Jesus. These things cannot be mere coincidence or cultural. So this really does seem to be more than just a brain problem. There is a spirit that is doing this to the child.
The 9 disciples that had stayed behind had been trying to cast out this demon without success. Now keep in mind that they had previously gone out throughout Israel healing people and casting out demons. Jesus had given them authority to do so. There was something wrong in this situation and they didn’t know what it was. This goes to show that casting out demons is not about knowing the right words or merely being a disciple of Jesus. Definitely we need to be connected to Christ in a living relationship. But there is more to it than that.
In verse 41 Jesus brings up the issue of faith and perversion. It is not addressed to the disciples, but to the generation as a whole. It seems that this situation is itself a picture of how degraded Israel had become and how plundered by the enemy they were. Spirits cannot just possess someone. They can only take hold of someone when they have willfully opened themselves up to them. This is done through false religions, occult arts, magic, sorcery, fortune tellers or any other such things. Somewhere someone in this family has been going to spirits for something and it has resulted in a small child being possessed. What does faith and perversion have to do with this? God had given Israel perfect laws that would enable them to walk in power before the spirits of this world. He had warned them of those spiritual traps the enemy used to gain power over people. Yet, some did not believe the “old, archaic” words of the Bible. Instead they willfully went their own way seeking power from sources God had told them not to. On top of this, Israel had not merely sought power from another source, they also had done so while still claiming to be God’s people. Their lives had become a mixture of things from the Bible and yet things forbidden in the Bible. To twist God’s ways is to pervert them. Thus the child bound by a demon and the impotence of the disciples is a small picture of the problem throughout all of Israel.
Yet, Jesus tells the man, “If you believe all things are possible.” To which the man replies, “I believe, help my unbelief.” Here we see the mercy of Christ. Though it is frustrating that they are in the situation because of their own willfulness and sin, God still has compassion on us and wants to save us. Jesus points him back to the root problem. If you will have faith in God all things are possible. We are being challenged in this ourselves. We are a generation that is lacking faith in God’s word and in His ways. We have called our perversions acceptable to God by twisting Scripture to our own ends. We need to take warning.
Mark tells us that Jesus commanded the Deaf and mute spirit to come out of the boy. The boy convulsed greatly and screamed and then suddenly stopped. The crowd thought the boy was dead. However, Jesus took the boy by the hand and raised him up and gave him back to his father. This is a picture of us. We come to God full of all manner of evil things begging for help. Though he sets us free, it leaves us in a powerless state like this boy, as if dead. In his mercy, Jesus takes us by the hand and helps us to get up and walk in the new freedom that he has given us. Not all have been possessed by demons, but we all have found ourselves helpless and bound to the lies that they have sown throughout our society. Only Jesus can set us free.
Mark also has the additional information of why the 9 disciples could not cast out the demon. Jesus told them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting.” There are two things that stick out in this answer. First of all, there are kinds of spirits. Some are apparently harder to cast out than others. The disciples had not run into this kind before. The second issue has to do with prayer and fasting. We are not given the explanation of what prayer and fasting does to enable casting out “stronger” spirits. However, the greatest work of prayer is to focus us on God and his work. If we live our lives mostly focused on material things of this world and rarely on God, we will find that we lack power for certain spiritual things. Jesus points his disciples to this area. When he is gone, they are going to need to prayer and fast at greater levels in order to do the work that God has for them.
In verses 43-45 we see an interaction between Jesus and his disciples. All of the displays of power that Jesus had been doing caused them to expect the exact opposite of what Jesus was going to do. They expected a confrontation with the Romans and the leaders of Israel in which Jesus takes over. All of the majestic power of Christ was not headed to this objective. Rather, He was headed to a cross. Even today, many reject Christ because his answer to the world seems weak and pitiful to them. What a colossal waste of power, they think to themselves. This difficulty in understanding God’s ways has been a timeless problem for mankind. We don’t just think differently, but our thoughts lead in the exact opposite direction. The bible tells us that even the foolishness of God is far higher than the greatest wisdom of man. In Luke Jesus says, “let these words sink down into your ears…” A surface understanding alone will not work. Jesus was to be betrayed and killed; get it through your head. If we follow Jesus in a superficial way and ignore all the tough things that he says, we will not get far. The closer Jesus got to the cross the fewer people who gathered around him, until he was all alone. Jesus is the Rejected One. No matter how popular he is in a moment in time, we will all be tested in the long run. You will be forced to choose. Whom are you following? Are you following Jesus or the wise and great of this world? This is the question that is constantly put before those who wish to follow Jesus. To follow Jesus is to pick up your own cross expecting to die along with him. Let these words sink into your ears.
Email Article | Print Article | Share Article | tagged Demons, Faith, Fasting, Jesus, Possession, Power, Prayer, Revelation Pastor Marty Tuesday, July 29, 2014 at 12:10PM Evangelist Ernie Salinas was with us on Sunday July 27, 2014. He spoke from Colossians 4:2-3 regarding Paul's prayer for an open door. You can click on the audio to her Brother Salinas challenge us to recognize that not all open doors look like open doors. Sometimes we may even be tempted to run from the doors that God is opening for us. Paul's chains became the means by which he was "forced" to sit down and pen much of the New Testament.
What open doors lie before me that I may be too fearful to walk through? Let us rise up in faith, believing upon Him who has called us and opened the door for us!
Pastor Marty Tuesday, July 22, 2014 at 12:03PM On the heels of Peter’s confession that Jesus was the Messiah and the Son of the Living God, we have this event where three of the disciples actually see the divine glory of the Son of God shining through the humanity of Jesus. It is one thing to believe that Jesus is divine, it is quite another to see what these men saw that day. The apostle John refers to this when he says in John 1:14, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” The glory of Christ’s wisdom, healings, exorcisms, and control over nature come to its apex in this visual demonstration of the power of Christ called the Transfiguration. Let’s look at the passage in Luke 9:28-36.
It is somewhat difficult to comprehend exactly what it is to say that Jesus is both human and divine. Of course the disciples came to the fuller understanding of just who Jesus was over time. But they clearly proclaimed him as fully man and yet fully God.
What did this exactly look like? Well in some ways Jesus looked and acted like a normal human. He walked to places he wanted to get to. He got hungry and tired. He grew up like any other kid from an infant to an adult. The utter humanity of Jesus made it hard for those who knew him from Nazareth to accept him as Messiah and Son of God. His humanity was real and it clothed or cloaked the divine being that resided within. Yet, he did amazing things that could not be explained as human whether then or now. Jesus healed people on command and not just the trickery of lengthening someone’s leg. He traveled the country side healing everyone who was brought to him. He also commanded demons to leave possessed individuals and they came to their right mind. He showed amazing command over nature, whether in multiplying the bread and the fish to feed the multitudes or commanding the storm to stop and it obeyed. All of these things begged the question, “What sort of man is this?”
Yet, this event becomes the apex of events, up to this point, that helped the disciples to see Jesus as more than a man. Here the glory of Christ as the Son of God is allowed to shine through his humanity. Our passage today describes several things regarding this glorious event. First, the face of Jesus is “altered.” In Matthew and Mark the greek word used is literally “metamorphosed” and means to change form. Between these two words we see that the face of Jesus changed and yet it remained a face. It was just different. Another point is that his robe became brilliant white and actually cast light from Jesus. If you picture how the mantle of a gas lamp glows you probably have the right picture.
I think it is important to recognize that in this instance Christ does not get rid of his humanity in order for his glory to be seen. Rather, he allows his true glory to shine through his humanity. Even today, Christ retains a glorified body that allows his divine glory to shine through. The only difference is that this glorified body cannot die and does not grow old. Luke mentions this in relation to the second coming of Christ in chapter 21:27, “They will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” John glimpsed this again when Jesus appeared to him on Patmos in Revelation 1. Sometimes we are tempted to think that we will not be glorious until we die and get rid of this body. The truth is that the human body was designed to allow the glory of Christ to shine through it. God is saving us both in body and in spirit. Yes, greater glory lies ahead for us. But God wants to “shine” through us gloriously today.
Now another component of this episode is that Moses and Elijah appear and speak with Jesus. Of course the disciples would not know their identity at first and thus they are called men and then identified. Why? Some have pointed out that Moses and Elijah represent the Law and the Prophets. Both of which pointed to the coming work of Jesus, the messiah. Another thought is that Moses represents those who have died and are carried to glory (see Jude). Whereas, Elijah represents those who are caught up and carried into glory. Notice that Elijah and Moses are glorious as well. They are probably shining as well because of their faith in Christ. He has shared his glory with them. Now this is a promise that is held out to believers throughout the Bible. Daniel 12:3 says that, “those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.” Yet, their main reason for being there is to speak with Jesus regarding the work of dying on the cross that Christ still had ahead of him. Most likely this is an even that is revelatory for the disciples, but encouraging for the humanity of Jesus. Now at verse 32 we sort of transition to the disciples. So let’s look at their side of this.
Clearly Jesus intended for these 3 (Peter, James, and John) to witness this spectacular event. Later John would emphasize this in 1 John 1:2, “the Life was manifested, and we have seen, and bear witness, and declare to you that eternal Life which was with the Father and was manifested to us.” Of course he is talking about Jesus.
It is interesting that this happens during a time of prayer. Like the Garden of Gethsemane on the night he was betrayed, Jesus asks these three to spend time with him in prayer. It is clear that they are not used to spending time in prayer as they have trouble staying awake. Yet, they are awakened by the sudden appearance of the glory of Christ accompanied by two saints. Now sleep is used in the bible as a metaphor for spiritual sluggishness and lack of alertness. Thus prayer is continually connected to those who are awake and alert. Perhaps this is a prophetic picture of Christ’s 2nd Coming. Christ himself asked the question of whether or not he would find faith when he returned. If the time was not shortened even the very elect would not be saved. This idea that even faithful Christians would struggle with sleepiness in the last days leading up to Christ’s 2nd coming, is seen in the parable of the 10 virgins. Yes, 5 were ready and 5 were not, but all of them were asleep. It was the sudden announcement of the bridegroom’s presence that awakened them. I believe that God helps us in the weaknesses of our flesh. Just as Jesus put up with the disciples weakness in the flesh, so he knows our weakness as well. Yet, the Spirit of the Lord will always be faithful to wake us up so that we do not miss out on the glory of Christ.
One of the important things about this event is that Jesus had previously told his disciples that some of them would see Him coming in his Kingdom before they died. Here these 3 disciples are given a glimpse of what it will be like when the Son of Man returns with his holy ones, both angels and saints. This glimpse is so powerful that Peter thinks it is happening for good. But it wasn’t time yet for the Kingdom of God to be fully instituted here on earth. I say not fully, because Jesus did start the Kingdom of God here on earth. However, it is a spiritual kingdom in which Christ rules by his Spirit in the hearts of believers. It is not a kingdom that is run by men and rules over the peoples of the earth. Yet, the day is coming that Christ will return and complete the Kingdom of God on earth. Peter’s desire to build three shelters for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah, demonstrates what he thinks is happening. They are here to stay and Jesus is ready to reveal his true glory to all the world. Yet, the physical kingdom is to be delayed. A time of spiritual harvest must happen first; a time where people are called by the Spirit of God to embrace the spiritual leadership of Jesus Christ in their lives. As Peter is in the middle of announcing his plan for Jesus and the others, an ominous cloud not only comes over them, but is low enough that they “enter it.” I believe that this is intended to be connected to the pillar of cloud that led Israel in the desert. It only settled on the tabernacle and represented the presence of God. A change is being seen here as Christ allows his disciples to enter into the cloud of God’s presence with him. The voice of the Father once again announces to those who have ears to hear that Jesus is His beloved son and that they are to listen to him! I am sure that Peter meant well, but these words are too cutting to miss. Our flesh is always quick to try and jump in and do for God what we think He needs. However, God instructs us to knock it off and just listen to Jesus. He is the commander and the One with the plan. We are to follow him and not what we envision for him. Today, there are too many great leaders that are jumping in and telling the group what they need to do for Jesus without first asking the question, “What is Jesus telling us to do?” It is easy to point to the general instructions of the Lord and then say that the details are up to us. There is some truth in this. However, like Joshua sending troops against Ai, we ought to stop from time to time and ask God if there is something that we are missing before we rush ahead. Peter had a good intention, but rotten timing. Satan is looking for such people who have good intentions but are not submitted to the leadership of Jesus. They are easily received by others and easily manipulated by him.
Let me close by encouraging us to quit looking at our failures and weakness in the flesh and using that as an excuse for hanging back. You were designed to shine forth the glory of Christ. In this flesh we are not going to glow physically (unless it serves God’s purposes to do so). But the glory of who Christ is and his wisdom can be seen in us if we will daily lay our flesh at his feet and ask for his help. God is not surprised that we are weak and fleshly. Christ came precisely because of this. Thus let us throw off the excuses and fears and choose to follow him in every area of our life. Instead of second guessing Jesus and his apostles, let us throw off those things that are hindering us and make the choice to surrender to his leadership. It is he who is the cornerstone and it is he who set the apostles about him as a foundation for us today. Quit these false distinctions that try to distinguish between things Paul said and what Jesus said. These apostles were speaking at the direction of Christ and the Spirit of Christ. When we reject them we are ultimately rejecting the Christ who commissioned and sent them. Don’t be deceived. God is not mocked. He will not receive those who through clever sophistry develop arguments to redefine their sin as righteousness. That is not the path of glory, but rather the path of destruction. Let the glory of Christ shine through you today!
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