Mark Chapter 9 Verse 14

• So Jesus, Peter, James, and John come upon a dispute of sorts between the scribes and the disciples and I wonder what they were fighting about? What topic, what miracle, what perspective were they arguing? Maybe it’s How is Jesus healing? How did He do it?…feeding the thousands with just a few pieces of bread and fish? How did He bring Jairus’ daughter back to life? How does He have such wisdom and authority? What was the dispute about?
• Guess what. Doesn’t matter! The answer to that question only matters when Jesus isn’t there…Notice, watch this! As soon as Jesus enters the scene, the dispute is settled!!

Mark Chapter 9 Verse 15

• Greeted Him? Donde esta el dispute!? Where’s the dispute? Where’s the argument? Gone! Why! Because Truth has arrived man…and I gotta tell you, folks that are prone to arguments and disputes and contentions, well the root of that according to James Chapter 4 verses 1 – 4 is the fact that you’re cheating on God! You’re not content in God’s grace and so you lack giving grace yourself! You’re running-around on Him…fueled by pride…motivated by a desire for pleasure yet continually unfilled…James calls that adultery. Gives you a totally different idea about when you’re feeling feisty, doesn’t it? Shacking up with the world rather than walking in God’s grace which will always manifest itself in humility!
• What are we to do then? When someone angers up goes after you? Check this scene! Bring Jesus to them! And if that’s you, “When they saw Him, all the people were greatly amazed, and ran to Him…”   Got that emptiness? Got that knot in you around your wife, around your husband, around your boss…around that person that just gets under your skin? You’re welcome to dispute, but you do so with your back to Jesus…why not just win? There’s more for you…so much more…
• So what are they disputing about, who cares? Shut up man! Accept the rebuke, accept the wrong, accept the exhortation! They don’t even care anymore…why? Because Jesus is there now…peace, love, kindness, power, truth has arrived and man He just chokes out contentions…Notice, Jesus even to prove this point tries to draw it out of them…

Mark Chapter 9 Verses 16 – 18

• See what I’m saying? Jesus, the Good Shepherd, comes immediately (Mark loves that word) to the defense of His sheep, (and I love that by the way), and says, “Where’s the beef?” And the answer? Not “here’s my perspective…here’s my beef…YOU CAN’T TALK TO MEEEEE LIKE THAT! NO! But here’s my broken life, help me!” See that?! The cure for beef is Lamb! HA! The Lamb of God! The dispute is so long gone now!!!
• Now, although the dispute itself doesn’t matter, the implication in this scene is that the crowd was disputing, arguing, debating about demons. This father tells Jesus that he brought his possessed son to the disciples and yet they could not cast it out…And so the scribes and the religious elite jumped into action, formed a prayer chain, laid hands on the boy…NOPE. Here are the scholars, the scribes, the religious elite faced with a boy suffering tragically, a father pleading desperately…and their desire is to debate theology!? Oh how I pray that is not you or me…that we would care for the broken, bring healing to them and give them Jesus rather than match wits…what a waste of time!!

Mark Chapter 9 Verse 19

• I love Jesus’ response! “What, did you hear that dis!?” I’ll tell you what I heard, “Bring him to me.” Look, no man or woman on earth has the ability to heal another. To fix another person…only Jesus does. You hear of miraculous healings and folks maybe receiving a powerful message from a dynamic preacher and getting saved and their lives get all fixed up…look, that has very little to do with that so-called healer or that pastor. Jesus is THE Healer, singular. Jesus is THE Pastor, singular.
• Don’t place your faith in man please…because ultimately, when you grow to be just like that man, you will begin to place your faith in the mirror…It is God who wills and does in the hearts of men, Philippians 2:13 tells us and so you have a friend grieving, suffering, straying, searching? You can call me in, you can call a man or woman of God in but listen, I’m just gonna bring them to Jesus…why not you? What’s stopping you from doing that? Right then, right there…Jesus says, bring him to Me!
• I’ll tell you what stops you…you’re not ready for game-time! Before any athlete is ready to compete they’ve logged countless hours of practice, working out…preparation. Eating right, exercising, resting adequately and then, if they’ve done that, they step on the field an absolute weapon. Y’all getting hyped up for football season? What if they walk out there and in 5 minutes they’re all hands on their knees winded? HA (Stair story) So too in the spirit man! We’ve got nothing to give our seeking co-worker, we’ve got no energy for our kids, we’ve got no love for our wives, no respect for our husbands, no patience for our enemies…why? We’ve forsaken preparation. The trial, the test and/or the opportunity just reveals what you’ve been up to…
• Jesus says, “bring him to Me.” How? By praying today for what is to come tomorrow. By putting down the stupid joystick or phone or fitbit and spending time studying Truth each and every day. By deliberately striving to choose wisely, choose the ways of Jesus man, even in the details of your life and then when that buzzer goes off, that whistle blows and the game is on…when they fall apart, when she needs you, when he needs you, when your little ones need you…ba-BOOM, you are weapon of healing man…because you are prepared, powered-up and right there with you, very close, at your lead and on your six…Jesus Himself!
• KP Yohanan used to tell a story about his heart for folks and the story involved his hotel shower. He used to shower and leave. But one day his heart broke because he cared nothing for the next person…He wondered why he didn’t care about the hotel staff or the next person to use the room…and so he began to clean his own showers at hotels…I recently, after a workout at work, took a shower and there on the wall…a huge booger! I was so grossed out but immediately my mind went to the next guy…he would be grossed out too…so guess what I did…yup…and it was gross!
• BUT, that was gametime! And I was ready! And I gotta tell you, God was well pleased and I knew it…and the next guy was served…you see…a weapon of healing man…just like my Lord and Commander!

Mark Chapter 9 Verses 20 – 23

• Major! Boom! Atomic spiritual bomb right there! “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes!” This man is staring Jesus in the face and Jesus asks him to believe…doesn’t that sound a little weird to you? Of course Jesus I believe! You’re standing right here!
• You see so many years I got this wrong. Yes there’s a God. Yes Jesus is His Son. Yes He died for my sins. So what! Doesn’t that mean I believe? Doesn’t that mean I’m going to heaven…I’m a good guy ya know. I’m not a bad guy. I do my thing and get mines but preacher man on TV said if I would just believe in Jesus then I’m good to go. Yet here we have a mystery.   A man standing there with Jesus and Jesus says, “believe.”
• What’s the atomic truth bomb here then? The bomb that changes everything? Turn over to John Chapter 3…Jesus hanging out with Nicodemus at night…Nick at night > right here…and he (Nick) is a believer. DUH. But interestingly enough…he still lacks. So he comes to Jesus to find out what it is and Jesus says right here in verse 3, “Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God…” And look with me at verses 15 – 21. You see that word believe, believe, believe, used time and time again by Jesus? What did He just talk about though, what did He just say to Nick? You must be born again man!!!
• So believing that God exists saves no one, gives no power to do anything to anyone…you must be born again man by the Holy Spirit! So you realize that you’re a sinner, not a good person, on your way to hell, not even able to piece together your life, and you call out to God…placing your trust in the finished work of the cross and with your willing and open and broken heart, the Holy Spirit comes in and the ridiculous and sin sick heart dies man…and is reborn filled with God Himself…now the desire AND the power to get it together has arrived! AND your eyes are open…that is to believe man…to place your entire life into the hands of an entirely all-powerful God! (Which by the way is the best option! Think about it!)
• But then, even after you’re born again…free will remains! And now you have the choice as you walk through your life to either trust your senses or trust God…and as a Christian, obedience is the definition of believing…not belief unto eternal salvation (been there, done that) but belief unto salvation immediately…from whatever the situation…like this one here…real quick over to Hebrews…Chapter 3 Verses 18 – 19…so the power man, the rest, the wisdom, the salvation…it is all wrapped up in believing that God is the Way the Truth and the Life…even right now!!!

Mark Chapter 9 Verses 24 – 29

• The man becomes as dead and yet Jesus takes him by the hand and lifts him up! Exactly as He will do with you today, maybe unto salvation eternally, maybe unto salvation immediately…our part? Believe! So simple, even a child can get it…in fact, it’s even easier for them…more on that next week…