The Arrival of The King | Mark 1:1-3 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Series)

Good afternoon. Please meet me in the gospel of Mark in chapter one. Mark chapter one. We are beginning this journey in this new book, and I'm eager to join you on this endeavor. Mark chapter one.

And today, by the grace of God, we will we will hear the Lord through through the first three verses. And so let's read in verse one, the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Lord, we bow before you in our hearts, oh God. Lord, we tremble at your word.

We believe that this is your word, your eternal word, your sufficient word. It is like a fire and it is like a hammer. It can convict and cut and it can comfort and bind up. Lord, as we come to this book, grab us by the hand and lead us through it verse by verse. And help us see the glories of your son, Jesus Christ.

Lord, do the miracle that you've started at salvation in sanctification. Mold us. Melt us. Make us into the people that you have purchased for your own possession. Lord Jesus, you assured us that it would be greater for you to go so that the spirit of God would be in us and with us.

Now would his ministry be known today as he makes much of you? We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. You will benefit the most out of this series if you have a bible. That's true of every single Sunday.

But there will be times where this will be more of a teaching format, and there will be other times where this will be a preaching session. And, oftentimes, it's a mixture of both. But hold tight to your copy of God's word as we come to these three first verses in this glorious gospel account. What we just read is important. Mark says the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

And what's so important about that statement is that the word gospel is most used by this gospel writer in comparison to his companions. The word gospel is brought up a total of eight times in this book in comparison to Matthew who brings it up four times, and Luke and John actually don't mention it at all, at least directly. But Mark seems to be very interested in this concept of the gospel. It's right there when we begin this text, and it will be found in the closing words of his testimony. Now what's so important about that is when we understand what the word gospel means.

You know it. You're familiar with it. Aren't you? It simply means good news, glad tidings, something to celebrate about, something that brings about glee, delight, and bliss. And what we see here is that the fact that it is brought up, not just in the beginning, but throughout this account even to the end, it says something about how the Holy Spirit wants to remind us and reinforce an important glorious truth about the core message of our faith, and it is this.

It's about joy. It's about joy. And so we can properly interpret the first verse, the first part of it at least, the beginning of the good news. Good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This news is good and the joy that it produces is glorious.

And this is something that we have to consider because there are a lot of Christians who aren't very joyful. And this is exactly what the angel, at least one angel of the Lord told those shepherds on that divine night when they appeared with the glory of God shining around them. Fear not for behold, the angel says, I bring you good news with great joy. With great joy. That will be for all people.

Only those who have felt the shame of their sin and the condemnation that they deserve because of it, only those can testify about how this news about this person is indeed very, very good. Because that news to them, that's why you're here today, I hope, was the announcement and the declaration of their freedom. It it liberated them. It transformed them. It rescued them.

And so it is indeed good. But I have to say at the same time, those same precious people who can tell you so beautifully what that good news is from beginning to end and everything in between. The those same redeemed saints who can even testify of when and how that good news transformed them have over time become numb, have over time become stale. I hope you're not stale this afternoon. I I hope you're not indifferent to this.

But it is so often the case that the very same people who have known the touch of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ become that way and live that way. Because the good news becomes old news. It becomes old news. I had a friend who was ministering in a nursing home back in Canada, And I had a chance to be there a couple of times and they had a small little chapel room with just a few chairs for some of these elderly people. And he told me one time, we were laughing about it in time of fellowship where he came to the front and he said to these precious, you know, seasoned individuals, I've come to tell you today about how Jesus Christ came to die for your sin.

And one of those old ladies interrupted him and said, we already know that. And some of you today, you're probably sing saying to yourself, I already know what you're gonna say. And it doesn't move you anymore, It doesn't stir you anymore. It doesn't doesn't remind you of how it delivered you. We already know that, preacher.

We already know what you're gonna say. And my question is, is that right? Is the good news of Jesus Christ dependent upon the novelty of the news of our forgiveness? Is it just only for that period where that that news was fresh to us? Or is there something that it leads us to?

I want you to know that the joy that comes from the good news is not a momentary joy. It is a joy that we live in. It is a supreme happiness that you and I continue to experience as we walk with Jesus. And I wanna prove that to you with a verse that will challenge and even contradict what you and I have probably become very comfortable living with. And that is found in first Peter one eight and nine.

Please turn there because when you see this, it will eliminate every type of justification for why our hearts would not know a joy that is feelable and real. Peter is speaking to Christians and he says in first Peter one, eight to nine, though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. The gospel does not just produce a joy that is dependent upon the newness of that news when it comes to us. Because that same gospel that assures you of redemption also tells us of a purchase that has been made by Christ that gives every single sinner access to fellowship with the very person who died for you two thousand years ago.

And so this joy is is not just in the redemption. The joy is in the relationship that that redemption purchased. And that is a joy that you and I continue to know, and it is a joy that is not dependable on physical perception. That's what Peter says, even though you don't see him, you don't need to see him to know this quality of happiness that floods your heart in a miraculous way and that brings you to a category of glee that is incomparable to any other horizontal relationship. You may need your eyes and your hands and your ears to know the joy of mutual friendship and romance.

But this joy that comes with knowing Christ does not need your eyes. It's something that the Holy Spirit does in you in the deepest parts of who you are. And Peter could have said that you what? Believe in him and rejoice, past tense, but he doesn't. He says you still are rejoicing.

He's describing their current experience. As he's writing this to them, you believe in him now and you love him now and because of that day by day, you know a true joy. And when I mean joy, this may this may cause some friction to some of you. I'm not speaking about just a a theological idea. I'm speaking about you ready for this word?

Feeling. Something that you actually experience. Something that is actually there that's that's feelable. It's a sensation. It it causes you to sing.

It makes you satisfied. It makes you happy in Jesus. And what Peter is saying to these believers is that this joy is ongoing, or at least it should be. And this joy is so strong. It is so profound that Paul even says that we can rejoice in our suffering.

You and I can actually rejoice in our suffering. Now think about that for a moment. How realistic and honest is the Bible? It does mean that we are immune to pain. It does not mean that we will not know some kind of disappointment.

But what it does mean is that there's this deep seated work of the Holy Spirit that that keeps you anchored in Christ. It's amazing how suffering propels us. It's amazing how things and events in life that crush us make us run to different saviors to either numb us or medicate us or guide us. But what this joy does is that it keeps us close to Christ. It keeps us close to him.

And what's so amazing is that the standard of joy that Peter speaks about has no rival Because the Holy Spirit informs us about the grade of this happiness, which stems from believing in him and daily applying a love to the invisible one who is still your savior. What does he say about this joy? That it is inexpressible and filled with glory. Inexpressible and what does inexpressible mean? It means this, beyond human speech, language cannot articulate the delight that Christ brings to that soul.

Even the birds are singing about it. There is no expression or any full way of being able to communicate, of being able to communicate just what Jesus Christ brings to your heart when he becomes Lord of that heart. Now either Peter is lying, exaggerating, or there's something happening in us that is not lining up with the word of God. Now some might say, brother, I have to be honest that I have known such a joy in this life. There have been moments in my life where I was so stunned by either a love that was brought to me or an event that I experienced or my love towards someone else.

I mean, I wish you were there preacher when my baby boy was born. I had no words. All I can do was just cry. Isn't that inexpressible? And brother, I love my wife.

I love my husband so much that there are times where I can't even say those words. All I can do is embrace them and let them feel the warmth of my love because my love towards them is inexpressible. And I know that their love towards me is beyond human, like beyond poetry, beyond Hallmark cards, beyond gifts. Fair enough. But what do you do with the second characteristic that that Peter speaks of concerning this joy?

Filled with glory. Filled with glory. Full of glory. Do you understand what Peter is trying to say? This joy in the Lord is in a category all by itself.

It transcends all other joys. It takes it to another level. It exceeds natural euphoria, and it is a contentment that cannot be found in this world. Full of glory. Let me ask this again.

Please. Please hear me. Is Peter lying? Is Peter just stretching this? Is the Holy Spirit just playing with us?

Is this poetic license or is this real? Is it real? What did Jesus say? He says something so amazing before his disciples. These things I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.

Do you know why this joy that Peter speaks of, which is the same joy that Jesus speaks of? This the reason why it is full of glory, it's because it's Jesus' own joy. It's a joy that he knows. It's a joy that he enjoys. And it's a joy that he wants to share with those that belong to him.

The joy that Jesus has can be your joy and mine. And do you know what Peter is doing? In these verses, he is displaying before us the standard of the Christian experience. The average Christian should know this inexpressible and joy that is full of glory. And I wanna say that if you and I are true believers, does this resonate with us?

I'm not saying that joy isn't challenged. I'm not saying that we don't feel suffering. But what I am saying is have have there been moments and can you point to something perpetually throughout your walk with the Lord that there is this satisfaction that settles your soul. And you're not looking and wanting for the newest toys and tricks and trinkets in life. There's something that Christ has done in you as you believe in him and love him that keeps you calm with contentment.

It's good news, not just because we're forgiven, but because we know of fellowship with him. And I wanna tell you today, don't let Satan convince you of a lower standard of how you walk with the Lord Jesus Christ. And if you are in this place and you're saying, brother, I gotta admit, this joy is foreign to me. I I I I don't know if I can say that it's inexpressible. I don't know if I can I can really say that it's it's been real in my life?

The most joyous moment was when I came to Christ, and it's been a downhill thing since then. Then I I I beckon you. If this is if this is Christ's standard for you and I, then come before him in humility. Say, oh God, renew the joy of your salvation, and teach me to how to maintain it as I walk day by day, hand in hand with you. He will do it.

He will do it. Well, how will I know if I have it? Well, it'll be inexpressible and full of glory. That's how you'll know. You see, I'm scared sometimes that in the pursuit of being theologians, it's all blackboard theology and it doesn't become experiential.

The apostles, who are the foundation of the church, laying the foundation of the doctrines of the church, experienced what they preached. And the Holy Spirit has no different standard for you and I. How did we get here? Aren't we studying Mark? What does this have to do with our studying these first three verses?

Very simple. The first verse in the gospel account of Mark is reminding us that the the core message of our faith is good news. Good news. I heard a story of a man who evangelized and he came up to a person and he said, do you believe in Jesus Christ? And he came so sour and somber.

And the person responded in this way, almost a comical way, no thank you. I have enough problems in my life. We are to be a joyful people and and here is why this is so important that as a collective church family where we believe that we must carry our cross daily and that we must suffer and we will suffer and God is sovereign over our suffering when we are even preparing ourselves spiritually for the greater persecution that's coming to this nation, we must not forget also that we are a people of joy. We are A joy so rich that it helps us suffer well. A joy so rich that that joy itself is somewhat of a testimony of the goodness of this gospel.

The core message of our faith is good news. And listen, the Christian experience as a consequence of responding to that good news is filled with inexpressible and glorious joy. So why be ashamed of the gospel? Why be ashamed of the good news of Jesus Christ? Why blush?

Why shrink? Why let your voice tremor and quake when we have something that assures of assures us of man rescue, that brings us unmatched relief, that promises reward in this life and the next to those who respond to the demands of this good news? Why be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ? No need. It's good news and it produces good things.

Let's consider further what we see here in Mark one one. The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Although that word gospel is a broad term, it carries specific significance to an ancient Jewish audience and even to a gentile audience who lived under some kind of a monarch or with an emperor over them. What do I mean by that? Listen to this.

This is so important. The idea of of someone heralding good news to the general public was often associated with the announcement of some kind of military victory or political triumph. So there was a word association there. This this idea of good news was linked to to an event and and specifically an event that was heralded by somebody when it came to some conquest that was accomplished by their government or by their military. And you see that in first Samuel.

You see it in the book of Kings where somebody was designated to run back to the hometown and say victory has been brought. We have conquered the enemy. Our king triumphs. We move forward. And we even see it in the prophets.

We even see the idea of good news, especially in Isaiah. And what's amazing is the way Isaiah uses it is in the way in which God himself brings about some kind of deliverance. God himself brings about salvation or God himself is reminding and reassuring his people that he is ruling and reigning in their favor again. And one of the most famous ways that we see that played out is in Isaiah 52. In the Old Testament, we see it in verse seven.

You know it. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who publishes peace, who brings good news of happiness, who publishes salvation, who says to Zion, your God reigns. So what is the essence of the good news here proclaimed by the prophet? Your God reigns. Your God rules.

He is exalted. He is upon His throne and because He is upon His throne actively in your favor, He will bring about redemption for His people. He will destroy the oppressor. He will rescue. He will bring peace.

He will bring righteousness once again. When Isaiah said these words, it had an immediate application to the Jewish people at the time. But Paul by the Spirit borrows the same words and uses it in relation to gospel ministry. How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news. You know, this is a side thing, but I believe that's one explanation to why believers feel a sense of attraction and appreciation for gospel preachers.

How beautiful are those feet that have dedicated their lives to preach and to to declare the goodness of God. There there is a sense of love towards them and a specific type of adoration, not worship, but appreciation. But what we see here is so important because its ultimate fulfillment is when those beautiful feet who have been pierced on our behalf will land on the Mount Of Olives and where Jesus Christ will rule and reign on the earth, subduing the nations by his authority and his righteousness. All to say that in Isaiah, good news has the connotation of some kind of enthronement. That there is something taking place.

Somebody has been raised up who will rule and assure deliverance to those who are under their authority. It's in Isaiah 40 also if you read that chapter as well. So this is important to understand because when Mark says the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, it is very likely that those who are, yes Jews, but even Gentiles in reading or hearing these very words would say to themselves, We're about to hear about a king. We're about to find out about a king. And if you paid attention last week, which I hope you did, perhaps there would be an objection saying, but I thought you said that Mark was about Jesus being a servant, the suffering servant.

Isn't isn't the king Jesus reserved for Matthew? And you would be right. The theme is Jesus being the suffering servant, but he is no less of a king. He is no less royalty. He is a specific type of king, one who humbles himself and comes to serve.

And so even though the following events and records will show Jesus serving people and suffering even for his people, he is still a king. And I wonder if the Holy Spirit knew that that would perhaps be some kind of obstacle in the mind as they see a king going hungry, a king being hated, a king being shoved around, a king being crucified. Being very specific with the words kind of solves it. Because the Holy Spirit through Mark says, the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Meaning what?

This is not the complete story. This is just the beginning of it. The purpose of his writing is just to bring us the first phase of this king's redemptive plan and purpose on the earth. You know know what's going to happen when it comes to the return of this king. And the way that Mark introduces us to the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, just the first steps of what this king will do before he comes to bring everything to its completion is really interesting because he doesn't speak about the birth of Christ.

He doesn't begin with the genealogy to describe his human lineage. None of that. What he does is he actually goes to a prophetic prediction that doesn't even directly deal with Christ, but speaks of his forerunner in John the Baptist. Why? Why is John the Baptist showing up in the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

Because it was common in ancient times that if there was a true king prepared to come, that there would be a herald that would go forth before his face. And he would prepare the people and even the physical aspects of that city so that the king can come and the people would be ready for his arrival. And that is exactly who John the Baptist is. That is exactly why he is brought up. But notice also, if I were to tell you the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, where would I start?

Would would again, would I start with his birth? Would I start with his suffering? I mean, the answers vary, but Mark starts in the old testament. Mark Mark goes a hundred years hundreds of years rather before even Jesus incarnated and came in the flesh. And the reason why the Holy Spirit also wants to do that, this should excite you, is because the reader should understand that the person and ministry of Jesus Christ did not just appear out of nowhere.

Didn't just show up. Jesus did not just interject into history unannounced. Jesus did not just come without notice. His life, his death, his resurrection, his ministry was the fulfillment of an ancient expectation that was built up as God raised up one man after the other to give another prediction after the next. Creating this expectation.

When will he come? When will he arrive? And what we see here is that our faith, this Jesus, his message, his ministry, his mission was predicted long ago. It's not detached from redemptive history. Again, it's not random.

It's something that is part of a greater plot. It's something that's been told of. It's it's something of a greater screenplay even from the beginning of time. And that truth alone silences the skeptic who would say Christ is some kind of a concept that was brought up from a band of delusional men. Not so.

Everything about Jesus Christ was in total accordance with God's blueprint from eternity past. We have a solid faith. Credible, reliable, weighty, true, heavy. And part of that divine plan that God had instituted was that there would be a forerunner, and would you know it, he was predicted hundreds of years before his time as well. And that's what we see here.

As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, behold, I send my messenger before your face. The voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Please understand. There's even this is why we're staying on just one, two verses today because there's so many reasons, there's so many layers for this. Yes, we want to see that Jesus is a king even in the fact that there's a forerunner.

Yes, we want to see that our faith is connected to deep roots, credible roots. But also there is something to be said about the person of Jesus Christ. Not just that he's king, not just in the position that he will occupy, but listen, the very nature that he possesses. Mark through this, even though he is speaking about John the Baptist, even through those prophecies about John the Baptist is saying something about who Jesus is. And you know what Mark believes?

What you should believe if you are a Christian? This king, this servant, this predicted Messiah was in fact God himself. God himself coming into our world. God himself as king instituting and establishing a kingdom. He's saying how is that true?

Any student of the Old Testament would know that what Mark is saying here from Isaiah the prophet is not actually just from Isaiah the prophet. Right? He actually is quoting Malachi and Isaiah and he's merging them as one prophecy. And that was a common practice in this time when there was similar predictions and prophecies with the same theme that were saying the same thing. They would they were brought forth together, and then the author would credit the most prominent messenger, the most prominent prophet.

And Isaiah is that man. Isaiah is the one who is brought forth, though Malachi is still recognized in a veiled way. And what's so important about what we see here is that if we do the work in dissecting this prophecy, which is really two in one, you and I will recognize something that would make our hearts leap. If we care about who Jesus is, of course. What Mark is saying from the beginning through this, this Jesus, this Jesus, he's God.

He's God. I wanna show you that. Turn with me to Malachi three one. And let's look at this verse together, which is the first part of what Mark is saying. Behold, I send my messenger before your face.

That's in Malachi three one. Let's read Malachi's writing on it in Malachi three one, just a few pages back. Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple, and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts. There's so much that can be said about this one verse.

But let's look at the part that Mark uses. The very first thing that we have to establish is that it is God himself who is speaking in this text. When it says behold, I send my messenger, that's not Malachi speaking. That's Yahweh speaking. I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me.

The essence of the message is this, that there is one going forth. There is one who is going to be sent out and he's going to prepare the way. And he's not going to be sent out to prepare the way for a human king like David or for a mighty man of God like Moses. It's so explicitly obvious that what God is saying is that this messenger who is going forth is preparing the way for me, God, Yahweh. I myself will appear in my temple.

Sound familiar? I myself will arrive, but before I arrive, my messenger is going forth to prepare the way and more than just removing rocks and stones and paving out red carpet, preparing the way in the hearts of people to realize that Yahweh is on his way. He will prepare the way before who? Before me. And all you have to do is break this down logically to see the argument that is being made, and it is glorious.

One, whoever the messenger is, his mission will prepare the way of the coming of God. Two, we know that in multiple references, this messenger in the New Testament is John the Baptist. Three, what we also know is that John the Baptist prepared the way for the person of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Ergo, Jesus is Yahweh. He is God in human form, the very Lord that Malachi was speaking of and coming to his own and his own temple.

Now what's so amazing is when you compare Malachi's version of it to Mark's, there's a difference. Did you notice the difference? Go back to Mark one verse two and notice the difference. Behold, I send my messenger remember I told you the Bible really helped you here. Behold, I send my messenger before your face.

Every translation says it that way. When you go to Malachi, it doesn't say that. Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Contradiction. Mistake, error.

Yeah. Your bible's filled with error. Hold on. What's happening here? When you read it carefully, you realize that there is a very obvious difference.

Malachi says before me. Mark says before your face. And before we get too nervous, maybe it will comfort us a little bit to know that when Jesus Christ himself quotes Malachi, he quotes it in the same way that Mark does. Proof? You have your bible.

Right? Matthew, when he gives tribute in chapter 11 to John the Baptist in verse 10, look at how he says it. Look at the language that he uses. He says in Matthew eleven ten, this is he of whom it is written, behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you. We're we're we're teaching today.

In Malachi three one, you have two persons presented in that verse. Yahweh who says I send a messenger before me. So you have God and you have the messenger. In Matthew and in Mark, in referencing Malachi, you don't have two persons. You have three.

You have behold I send, that's God, my messenger, that's John the Baptist and now we're left with the question, who is before your face? We have three. Now we have three. And when we look at this, we think well, if we understand what before your face means and we understand, I mean, that much closer who we're speaking about. Before your face doesn't speak before an audience.

It means to go before one. Before your face. I send my messenger before your face. Somebody's gonna go before you. Well, who's that guy?

Who are we speaking about here? And what's amazing is when we look at this, all Matthew and Mark are doing because they are inspired by the Holy Spirit, Jesus is speaking. They are making a distinction. They are making a distinction within the Godhead so that people would better understand that though the Messiah does share the same nature as Yahweh, he is a distinct person. When Mark does this and Matthew also does this, this is what we have to understand.

Yes. They're inspired by the Holy Spirit and how they would often quote Old Testament references varied. Sometimes in the New Testament, you have word for word quotations with the Hebrew. Sometimes they would go to Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. Few hundred years before Jesus came, there was a Greek translation of the Hebrew bible and it worded differently.

Sometimes they would quote from the Septuagint. Have you has anybody has anybody noticed that? You read through the New Testament, you look at a quote, you go that's different from when I go to the verse. Yes? No?

Maybe? And then there are times like what we see in Mark where the Holy Spirit leads the writers to interpret what the Old Testament verse is speaking about. And that's what's happening here. Mark is interpreting what Malachi is saying, and the way he's interpreting it is so glorious. It's so wonderful.

By quoting by quoting it in this way, what he's saying is, yes. God himself is coming. Malachi said, before me, he is coming. But when Mark quotes it, he points to Jesus as a separate person to show a distinction within the Godhead. We are trinitarians.

We believe God is one in essence but has three persons. Co equal in divinity and value and worth and worthy of worship and attributes. So when he says before your face, he's saying before the face of Christ And when you marry those things together, you realize, yes, it is God who is coming, but it is God the Son in particular who is coming and who John the Baptist is preparing for. It's not God the Father who is coming. The messenger was sent out before the face of God, the Son who is coming.

The second person of the Trinity will enter into this world with flesh. I hope that makes sense. And then he just solidifies it when he quotes Isaiah in verse three, the voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. Isaiah says, prepare the way for our God. And then Mark says, the way of God is His, His path.

This Messiah, this Jesus Christ as well. And so what we're understanding from this is that the the gospel of Jesus Christ, who is a king, he's not a king that comes from a human lineage necessarily, but he is a king that comes from eternity past. He is God. And I think here is a good place to understand something that is that is quite important when it comes to understanding the deity of Jesus Christ. The deity of Jesus Christ.

You know, many people have asked me this. Some of you might be thinking about it right now. Why so complicated? Why not just have just just one verse where the incarnate Christ just just said, I'm God. Worship me.

You want proof? Here's some miracles. That that would kill a thousand arguments. That that would put to death a lot of debate. Why don't just do that?

Why why make these connections? And why why does Jesus make these claims that to us seem ambiguous, at first, at least? That seem unclear, that seem like they're open for interpretation. They're not when you really understand the scriptures. Wouldn't it make it more clear?

Wouldn't it there'd be less confusion? I argue that actually if Jesus would have come and says, I am God, worship me, there would be more confusion. Potentially. Have you ever thought about that? And the reason why I believe that is because he understood his immediate audience.

And his immediate audience were Jews. And to those Jews, a majority of them who had a limited understanding of the scriptures, though they had the knowledge, the interpretive skill wasn't very much there. Jesus rebuked the whole school of religious people because of that. When they heard God, they identified it with the Father. Isaiah speaks of God as the Father.

That's not a New Testament concept. God, one who occupies heaven. God, the one who is sovereign over all the universe. God, the one who cannot be seen. God.

And so here's Jesus Christ. He comes and what we want him to do is say say it. Just say it. Your God worship you. Yeah.

Okay. Tell us. And yet that could be more of an obstacle than anything else if he just said it so plainly because that would that would leave those who are hearing it with an understanding, a backdrop of who God is to say, so you're the you're the one who's supposed to be in heaven who is supervising the universe? You're the one that we cannot see and here you are. We we we know you're from Nazareth.

Do you see how this can become an issue? Do you see how this can become more of a problem than of a benefit? And so what Jesus does, as you will see throughout this gospel, as you see throughout the gospels, is that he meets his people where they're at with their understanding. And what he does is he shares and he declares that he shares the same nature as the father, as God, and the prerogatives that he possesses, but at the same time wants to teach them that though he does share them, he is distinct. He is not the father.

He is God the son. And some believed it. Some realized it. While others were ready to stone him because of such blasphemy. Jesus is the best evangelist.

Jesus knew how to explain these things. And Jesus is infinitely wise, and we see it even here. And we see it even with this text like this, where we are invited to see that Christ is distinct, but he is the same as God. And here's the point as we bring it to a close, That this whole introduction is to remind us Christians that we have good news. And this good news was planned and prepared and predicted long ago.

And although many heralds have gone down throughout history to announce the coming of a new king, there is no king like this king. Because this king is God Himself who wrapped Himself in flesh, entered into this world not to be served, but to serve. There is no king like Him. And if He is not King of your life, what are you waiting for? I have good news for you today.

That Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came into this world to save you, to rescue you. Some of you know this already, right? Yeah. But I'll tell you that there is something healthy going on in your spirit when you can hear mind when he died. And as he hung there upon the tree, he received the full account of your sin that lays upon your shoulder today if you are not connected to his saving power.

And you will have to pay for every single sin that you have committed as you stand before God when he bids you to come before him, and you give up your final breath. That is not the end of your existence. That's just the beginning of one that is much more real. And as you stand before God, though you may have been able to bury your sin from your parents, bury your sin from your boss, bury your sin from your pastor, and hide it and live on as though you were something and someone good. All of it will surface up before the most holy atmosphere that you've ever stepped foot in.

And God will be there with a trillion of his angels as they behold you there in that moment, asking you to give an account for all that you've done against his law, all the times that you violated your conscience, all the times that you have harmed somebody else who was created in the image of who he is, what will you do? What will you say? I've heard many people say, I will stand before God, and I have a list of questions to ask God. Oh, really? I have a feeling you're not even gonna be able to look at your list.

As you stand before his blazing holiness that will make your bones feel like they're jello because you can't stand in such glory in your corrupt state. And yet at the same time, for those who are in Christ, what would be so fearful and intimidating, the scripture promises we can come before with great joy and security. What Jesus does for that appointment that you have with this king who is also judge is that as you stand before him, you have nothing to account for. If anything, the bible says you'll be crowned for perfection of life that you have never lived, but that you put your trust in in the person of Jesus Christ. And all God will see and all those angels will see in that moment is a life free from sin, free from any violation of God's law because the scripture uses a term, you are clothed in Christ.

You are clothed in Christ. And he invites you into his presence forever, and you enjoy his fellowship unfiltered, unhindered forever and ever and ever. Do you want that? I'm not just saying you, if you want it, you need that. And I just call you as I close now to run to the foot of the cross of Jesus Christ while you still have breath.

And let the eyes of your heart, not these physical eyes, but the eyes of your heart see his beauty and his majesty. And don't turn away from it. Let it be the very reason why you run towards him and surrender. Do it. Do it.

His arms are still open. His blood still has power, and there is no sin too great for him not to forgive. Oh, would you come to him? Come to this king. Let's pray.

Lord, thank you for the news of the arrival of Jesus Christ through Mark. Lord, we pray that you would help us with this joy that this good news produces. Lord, we pray that if it was a spark for a few months when we came to know you originally, oh Lord, make it a fire again. Bring us to that place where it is inexpressible and full of glory. Lord, we wanna taste it.

We wanna know it. Lord, we thank you how how rich your word is, how deep it is. We worship you today. For the person in here who doesn't know Christ, oh, lord, would your holy spirit convict for the one who knows Christ, who has lost this joy, only you can bring it back again. Lord, we are so dependent on you, and so we pray.

Help us. Help the sinner. Help the saint. We need you. In Jesus' name.

Amen. We stand and worship the Lord together.