June 9, 2024 Mark 3:20-35 Series B Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God, our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, the focus of our meditation today is taken from our Gospel lesson from Mark chapter 3, especially these words, “But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.”
I’m going to say something super obvious - each of the four gospels is a little bit different than the other 3. That’s why we have four books and not one. Each of the Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, tell the story of the life and times of Jesus a little bit differently. While they all preach the same message, about the salvation accomplished and won for us on the cross by Jesus Christ, they present it in a way which is unique to them.
This is a good thing, and it happens in other areas in life all the time. I’m sure this has happened to you, your spouse and kids take an afternoon adventure while you get some work done. And when they get home they are excited to tell you about what happened, and you get different reports from each of them, describing the same event. We are in the church season of Pentecost, marked by the color green, and what that means for us is over the next few months, we are going to get a good look at the Gospel of Mark.
The Gospel of Mark is the shortest of the four gospels. It was written by Mark, who was a disciple, a companion and aid, to the Apostle Peter. It is documented that Mark wrote down Peter’s testimony as he gave his eye-witness account of Jesus life and ministry. And a few things stand out about this Gospel that make it different than the others. Mark’s Gospel is a called the Gospel of action. The word Immediately is used frequently. There is a sense of urgency as Christ works to fulfill his purpose. It is important to know working through Mark that , Peter doesn’t tell the stories in the order they happened. When he is describing the life of JEsus, it’s not this event, then this event, then this event. So it’s like with your kids when they come back from their day trip. The did all kinds of cool and fun things, but when they tell you about it, they tell you about it in order that’s important to them, not necessarily the order that the events happened.
Mark is brilliant in the way he structured the Gospel, and where the account takes place, what other accounts are near it in the gospel tells us information just like the story itself. Here’s what I mean. Or text today comes from Mark 3. If you want to follow along, Open your pew Bibles to Mark 3 on page 1066. page 1066_. This is what I mean by the order of stores being important. I
f you were here last Sunday, we looked at Mark 2, where Jesus heals a man on the Sabbath. Jesus is confronted about keeping the laws of Moses by the people who know what the laws of Moses are, by the Pharisees.
What happens next? Jesus does more work on the Sabbath. He heals a man with a withered hand, again on the Sabbath, showing how God provides for his people, Sabbath is made for the benefit of man, not the other way around. Then Jesus goes and heals everyone he can, great crowds followed him, he heals people and casts out demons. He then chooses his 12 disciples. Then something strange happens. In verse 11, the evil spirits know who Jesus is, and in verse 21, his family, those who know him best say this, “he is out of his mind.”
Mark draws us in. He shows this great paradox. How do those who are unclean know who Jesus is and those who are clean don't? How is it that the enemy recognizes Jesus but his friends, his family, his people, reject him? It doesn’t make any sense. Jesus starts to reveal the answer to us in our text today, and then we see it’s completion in the parable of the Sower, which we will take a look at on a different Sunday.
Why does this order of text matter? This matters because Jesus answers the question of “why do people who should believe in Jesus don’t and why do people who are unlikely to know Jesus do.” It’s one of the great mysteries which Christians have wrestled with since the beginning of Christianity. Paul talks about it Romans. Luke mentions it in Acts. Why don’t God’s people recognize God when he comes to deliver them?
We wrestle with this question too. Not just about the Jewish people, but about all people. Why is it that we live in a world with such rampant unbelief? If Christianity is true, which it is, and Jesus is the Son of God, which he is, why do so many people deny the truth, deny the reality of creation? Why do some people try to say that Jesus was just a man, a controversial Rabbi? Why do other people say that Jesus never claimed to be God, but that was added later? Why do still others say that he never existed? Why are there people who are in positions who study these things, friends, family and others, people who should know about Jesus, why do they reject him and his teachings? Why?
The answer? Mark has it hear at the heart of our text, verse 27, Because the strongman is loose.
The strong man, the devil is hard at work keeping his possessions. He began to lay claim to them in the very beginning when he enticed Adam and Eve away from God and into his own hands, and even know he has become the prince of this world. His first act at taking what belongs to God and making it his happened way in the beginning, with the words, “did God really say…” He uses trickery and lies to deceive and to lure people away from God. And thre strong man's grasp is so strong, many don’t see it.
We see it in our Gospel lesson. Again, this is why the where of the story is important. Jesus is traveling around Israel doing the things of God. He setting people free. Free from sickness, free from demonic possession. But when he does this, what do they say? “It is by the prince of demons that he can cast out demons.” Lies are being spoken, lies are being taught, lies are being believed, lies meant to discredit Jesus and to prevent people from seeing their salvation.
And lies continue to this day. While the words may have changed, the lies still, at its core, is the same thing. “Did God really say?” Did God really say that he created the world? Did God really say that you shall honor your father and mother, or you shall remember the sabbath day? Did God really say that transgressing his will for humanity, his laws, is wrong? Did God really say that I can’t talk badly about my neighbor? Did God really say.
And these lies ensnare. But there is one lie in particular that stands out to me, and that is, “My sin is too great to be forgiven.” Or to say it a different way, “I’m not a good enough person to be in church,” or yet again, “I keep sinning, how can I be a Christian?” It’s the same lie. Did God really say that your sin is forgiven?
-pause-
Jesus came to earth to bind the strong man and to plunder his home. To take back his treasured possession, to back you. Jesus came because you are his treasured possession and he wants to set you free. Free from bondage to the strong man, free from bondage to sin and death.
So he did. He bound the strong man, and he did it in the least likely of ways. He did it by dieing. When you think of struggle of taking on a strong man, this is not the image that comes to mind of the fight, but it is what Christ did. Jesus has set the captive free.
And I love this about Mark. In Mark, we see Jesus as a hero, almost like as a comic book hero, marching on to his goal, going to the cross. And we see Jesus marching to set you free. He goes to the cross to fight in your place, he goes to the cross and looses your chains. Because he gave up his life, in your place, you are set free.
And this is God’s promise to you, that you have faith and you are forgiven. There is no sin that you can commit which Jesus cannot forgive. There is nothing so special, so unique about you and your sins that Jesus cannot and has not died for. Jesus knew your shortcomings before you were born. Jesus knows the darkness of your heart, the temptations you struggle with, how you want to listen to the devils lies. He knows that. And that’s why he came, to set you free from the strong man, to forgive your sins and free you to life with him, in his home, as his possession, free of the strong man, free of sin, and ultimately, free of death.
And Jesus plundering of the strongman continues. Each and every day the word of God is proclaimed. This word is powerful and effective. And breaks the chains of bondage of sin and death and sets you free.
Know that you have been set free. Know that Christ has won you back, that you, his treasured possession are in his hands. Know that your sins are forgiven, that Christ has washed away all your sin and given you his forgiveness. For Christ, your savior, your redeemer, has come. Amen.
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