* John came preaching a message of repentance and the crowds flocked to him.
* Then Jesus comes along and John points to Jesus.
* John then rebukes a political leader for his immoral lifestyle and was thrown in prison.
* Jesus never went to visit him.
* Actually, Jesus went the opposite direction when He found out John was in prison.
* Jesus preached the same message John preached.
* You could say it this way - “After John was removed from the picture, Jesus stole his message.”
* Our goal should be to live like John.
* We are here to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom and then get out of the way!
Mark 1:14-15 (2/21/19)
Poor John
February 21, 2019 • Benham Brothers
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Lessons From Mark
Mark 1 (2/22/15)
February 22, 2015 • Benham Brothers
Baptism - Mark 1:4-8. Disciple - Matthew 28:19. Parable - Mark 4:10-11. The word "baptism" in the Greek means "immersion." John preached an immersion by way of repentance. He preached that if you wanted the kingdom of God you needed to be immersed in His nature through repentance. John painted the picture of this immersian through dunking people in the water. When you immerse yourself in the water EVERY part of your body gets wet. When you immerse yourself in the nature of God every part of you gets touched. In Mark 1:8 John reveals that we are to be immersed in the Holy Spirit, which washes away your internal dirt. Matthew 28:19 - Jesus gives us a key on how a disciple is made: Immersion into the very nature of God - the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. For our spirits this is a one-time event - new identity through justification. For our souls (mind, will, emotions) it's a continual process - transformation through sanctification. The only way our brain catches up with our new identity is through immersion! Mark 4:11 - only disciples are the ones who "get it!" The devil doesn't want you to be a disciple because he doesn't want you to "get it!" The mystery of the kingdom were given only to disciples. For everyone else Jesus had to paint pictures. Our lives as disciples become His pictures - His living parables.
Mark 1:4 (2/20/20)
February 20, 2020 • Benham Brothers
* Faithful in little leads to faithful in BIG. * Jesus could’ve come at any time in history. * But He came before books, newspapers, telephones, internet, media, etc. * He came at a time when word about Him would spread slowly - very slowly. * Vs 4 - John was stationed in an “uninhabited region.” * This would be like God’s main spokesman for what He’s doing in the world having a Twitter following of 17 people. * But if that person was simply faithful, as John was, then he would fulfill God’s role for his life. * Just about the time John’s audience began to grow, he was removed from the picture. * Now, 2k+ years later we’re still talking about his faithfulness. * Testimony of Bible study - at the height of our business I started doing it with hardly anyone there….