Sermon video Mark 2:1-12, in which Jesus continues to prove Himself God in the flesh by proving His authority to forgive sins through the healing of a paralytic.

Here’s today’s message from Mark 1:40-45, in which Jesus establishes His authority as God over leprosy, and shows God’s compassion for the lost and power to save. https://youtu.be/_zYU0iJjJYU

Sermon video–Mark 1:29-39 –in which Jesus continues to establish proof of His authority over all things, leaving all who do not believe and receive salvation without excuse.

Jesus, the Word of God in the flesh, teaches the Word of God written, with Authority, not as others do. Then He proves His authority is legitimate by commanding an unclean spirit, who has no choice but to obey against his will. That story and some lessons we learn from it, in today’s message on Mark 1:21-28 is here: https://youtu.be/pkfArbsW5BA

Forgiven and
Set Free to Serve
the Savior
(part 2)

A Walk of Faith Devotional by Dave Bunnell

From the close of part 1, right after Peter had endangered himself and his testimony in the garden of Gethsemane, by using a sword to strike off the ear of the servant of the high priest: “…. But none of these four terrible consequences actually happened. Because the mercy of God intervened in three wonderful ways that show us how God deals with us, too, in the aftermath of our greatest failures.”

And now, the conclusion of the devotional:

First, Christ rebuked Peter. This was a loving gift of God for Peter. “Put your sword away,” Jesus said, “for all those who take up the sword will perish by the sword.” This rebuke meant more than just the obvious fact that if Peter kept fighting, they would kill him. There was great depth of spiritual knowledge imparted by His words. Jesus was telling us all that if we try to fight a spiritual battle with human strength, we will lose. Take up your sword, and you will die by it. Is your fight against temptation? Try fighting it in your own strength and willpower, thinking you stand, and you will fall. Is your fight against the deception that blinds a loved one who doesn’t know the Lord? Try fighting that deception with your own words, wisdom, and intellect, and you’ll know the pain of watching them stay unsaved. Is your fight against those who oppose you because of your Christian faith? Try fighting them with any human means, and watch how quickly they make a fool of you. To win spiritual battles, you must take up spiritual weapons. He who lives by the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, will see his flesh die by it, so that his spirit might live victorious.
We need to remember that when God rebukes us, it is a great gift. The name “Nathan” literally means “gift from God.” It was Nathan that God chose to rebuke David after his great sin with Bathsheba. The rebuke is a gift. To paraphrase a proverb, “the rebuke of a friend is like a kiss on the cheek, while the flattery of an enemy is like a slap on the face.” We need to never despise the Lord’s chastening and correction, because it is an act of the deepest kind of love, and it protects us, as it did Peter here.
The second wonder of Christ’s actions was to take Peter’s sin upon Himself. He didn’t even have to wait for the cross to show His sacrificial intentions. Two gospel accounts tell us that Jesus told the soldiers, “I am the Man you seek. Let these others go.” Peter deserved to be punished for taking up the sword, but Jesus intervened, telling the guards, “I’m the one you want to kill. I take responsibility. Take Me, and let Peter go free. Don’t hurt him; hurt Me.” The guards obeyed, because Jesus was in complete and total control of everything that was happening. They bound Jesus and took Him away, letting the others go. Jesus, the innocent One, had already placed His heart on the cross that night. “I want the punishment for your sins,” He was telling Peter. “Give it to Me.” That’s what He was telling you and me as He went to the cross, too, my dear friends. You see, the crucifixion wasn’t just a moment of dying for “the world” as a group. He was dying for you and for me as individuals. Jesus was taking the very specific responsibility and punishment for Peter’s specific sins. And for yours. And for mine. He was, in His omniscience, completely conscious of you and me and all the sins we have ever committed or ever will. And He was willingly taking the punishment for them all, saying, “I am the One to be despised, rejected, abandoned by the Father and punished. Let these others go.”
The third wonder of Jesus’ response to Peter’s sin was to take away the earthly consequences of it and erase the damage it had done. Jesus knelt down and picked up the severed ear which lay on the ground. He reattached it to the young man’s head. His holy power flowed through His hand to the side of that head, and healed it. It was as if the ear had never been cut off in the first place. As if Peter’s sin had not happened. Not only was Peter forgiven, but the consequences of his sin had been erased.
So often, we don’t want to let God do that for us. We ask Him for forgiveness of sins, and we receive it. Then we thank Him for it. But all the while, we’re telling ourselves, “I’m glad God forgives me, but I have to face the consequences for my sin myself. I made my bed, now I have to lie in it. I deserve to be punished, even though He has forgiven me, and now I just have to face the judgment that’s coming to me.” We think we’re being pious when we tell ourselves these things. We don’t even see the pride. We don’t even realize that Jesus died to take away our sins completely, and we try to take as much of the consequences for our sins upon ourselves as possible. Jesus is saying to us, “Don’t do that. I want the punishment placed on Me, so that I can restore you to be mightily used of Me. Let go of your pride. You made your bed, but I will lie in it.” Very un-American concepts, but very Christian ones.
James 2 says “Mercy triumphs over judgment.” That means that the mercy of God is not just equal to the judgment and condemnation we deserve for the sins we have committed–it’s greater. Much greater. “Marvelous grace of Jesus; greater than all my sin. How shall my tongue describe it? Where shall its praise begin?… Taking away my burden for all eternity, for the wonderful grace of Jesus reaches me. Wonderful the matchless grace of Jesus! Deeper than the mighty rolling sea! Higher than a mountain, sparkling like a fountain–All-sufficient grace for even me. Broader than the scope of my transgressions. GREATER FAR than ALL my sin and shame! Oh, magnify the precious grace of Jesus. Praise His Name!”
“Mercy triumphs over judgment.” Have you been living under the judgment of your sins of the past? That’s not what God ultimately wants. True, sometimes, in some circumstances, there are earthly consequences for our sins that God chooses not to take away, just as He allowed David’s son with Bathsheba to die. But these situations are far rarer than the ones that He DOES take away the earthly consequences. (And even in David’s case, God limited the earthly consequences of the sin, by sparing David’s own life.) 1 John says, “For this purpose was the Son of God revealed: to destroy the works of the evil one.” If Christ’s sacrifice on the cross destroyed everything that Satan has done, you better be believing He can do a major number on your sins!
If you’re living under the condemnation of your own guilt and shame for sins of the past, let Jesus take that away. Allow Him to show you the fullness of His mercy. Don’t settle for seeing just enough of God’s love and mercy to get you by. Let Him reveal that love and mercy to you in all its fullness and glory. His mercy is greater than we can comprehend, so if you think you already know how great His mercy is, that means your concept of His grace is much too small to be realistic! Let Him show you that He wants to take the severed ears you have cut off and reattach them. He is willing and able to miraculously take away not just your sins, but many or even all of their consequences. That’s what He usually does. If you look back at all of the sins of your entire life, you will see that He has already done that for 99.9% of them, without your even noticing. And when it doesn’t happen, it’s often because we don’t let Him do it. We pick out our few greatest failures and demand of ourselves and of God the opportunity to be punished for them for the rest of our lives.
Our sin–even our greatest, most terrible sin–is finite. His mercy is infinite. In your worst moments of your deepest depravity and defilement, you are powerless to overwhelm the grace of God! You couldn’t do something unforgivable if you tried. No matter how far you have strayed from Him, you CANNOT escape the reach of His love!
I am not talking about a cheap grace here. Far from it! The debt Jesus paid for our sins had the highest price tag of any transaction in the history of the universe. But I am talking about a grace that has been paid for in full. It’s not a cheap grace, but it is a complete grace. A grace that leaves you with your entire sin debt completely cancelled. You have not been merely paroled or put on probation by God, but pardoned by Him.
If the only thing standing between you and the complete healing for the sins of your past is your belief that you deserve the earthly consequences for your sins, let God take that away from you now. Confess the pride and ask Him to forgive that and give you a heart that fully believes the truth and accepts and acknowledges His mercy in all its fullness. Of course you deserve punishment! Of course you deserve the consequences! God already knows that. He knew it before you ever committed the sin in the first place. And He knew before the dawn of time, that He had chosen you to be among the forgiven. Let Him have His way, without interference today. Let His mercy and grace and love go just as far and do just as much for you as He desires.
Then praise Him with your whole heart for as long as you live.