Category Archives: Mark

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When Jesus Speaks

Demons Are Removed, Minds Are Restored, Hopes Are Renewed

In the most dramatic fashion, the story of the man delivered from a legion of demons paints a picture of the awful reality of Satanic dominion, and, more importantly, of the matchless, irresistible power of he who is greater than Satan, Jesus! What an encouraging reminder that there is One who speaks and demons flee, who speaks and minds are healed, who speaks and hope is restored, who speaks and a future is birthed where there had been none. You have to love it when Jesus speaks, because life gets set straight!

The Journey: Mark 5:18-19

As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon possessed begged to go with him. But Jesus said, “No, go home to your family, and tell them everything the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been.”

What an amazing story this is! A man is in such complete bondage to so many demons that they call themselves “Legion”—which literally meant thousands. This demonized man roams the hills, barking mad, terrorizing the locals, and is so supernaturally strong by the power of Satan that no one can subdue him. Yet with just a word from Jesus, the stunned demonic powers flee and their pitiful victim is free.

You just gotta love it when Jesus speaks, because things happen!

In the most dramatic fashion, this story paints a picture of the awful reality of Satanic dominion, and, more importantly, of the matchless, irresistible power of he who is greater than Satan, Jesus! What an encouraging reminder that there is One who speaks and demons flee, who speaks and minds are healed, who speaks and hope is restored, who speaks and a future is birthed where there had been none.

You just gotta love when Jesus speaks, because life gets set straight!

But that’s not the end of this incredible tale. Jesus actually carries on a conversation with the demons—which was not a pattern he was setting for future deliverance ministries, mind you—and the suddenly evicted hoard of demons request new residence in a herd of pigs. And Jesus obliges them! Poor pigs—why couldn’t it have been cats?

You just gotta love when Jesus speaks, because devils submit!

But wait—there’s more. A man has just been set free from the most awful prison of insanity and hopelessness, so now he wants to give the rest of his life to following and serving this Great Emancipator. However, in a stroke of kindness, Jesus sends him back to his family, which no doubt has long ago given up on their son. Jesus doesn’t parade him around as a trophy of his healing ministry like some so-called “faith healers” would most likely do today, he just quietly sends him back to the ones whose years of tears and hours of prayers will now be rewarded with unbridled joy.

You just gotta love when Jesus speaks, because relationships are restored!

But best of all, Jesus reminds this man—and you and me, by extension—that the real story here is not the sensational encounter with the legion of demons, nor the extraordinary deliverance of the Gadarene demoniac, and not even the dramatic swan dive of the swine off the Galilean cliffs. No, the real story here is how merciful God is. And whether you’re a Gadarene demonic or just a garden-variety sinner posing as a church-going saint, the only and best hope you have is the mercy of God.

Truly, you just just gotta love when Jesus speaks and mercy flows.

I love how Charles Spurgeon put it: “There is mercy with the Lord; this should encourage the miserable to approach Him; this informs the fearful that they need bring nothing to induce Him to bless them; this calls upon backsliders to return to Him; and this is calculated to cheer the tried Christian, under all his troubles and distresses. Remember, mercy is like God, it is infinite and eternal. Mercy is always on the throne. Mercy may be obtained by any sinner.”

Yes, Mercy is forever on the throne, and sinners can obtain it.

Jesus told the man delivered from demons to go home to his family and tell them all that God had done and how merciful he had been. Since God has been both kind and merciful to you, should you do that, too? Tell that to someone today.

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, today I simply praise you for your mercy. My heart and my hands lift heavenward in unending gratitude.
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2,000 Years and Going Strong

It May Come Slowly, But You Can’t Stop It

You may not be able to see the seed of God’s kingdom growing, but it is—and it will. You may never see the end result, but that does not diminish the seed’s potential. Just keep planting that seed wherever you can. Water the soil—in your own life, in your family, your circle of influence and at your church. Keep the weeds pulled—it is a constant battle because the Enemy keeps sneaking into the field to sow tares. And don’t get discouraged, because finally, the grain will ripen.

The Journey: Mark 4:28

…And finally the grain ripens.

Jesus spent a fair amount of time in both private settings and public presentations describing the kingdom of God to people. One of the compelling ways he did that was through stories—parables—earthy vignettes that revealed spiritual truth about God, heaven and the kingdom life. Jesus did that because people’s understanding of God’s kingdom had gotten messed up over the thousands of years since God has first called the tribes of Israel out of Egypt and fashioned them into a people for himself. So through parables, he reminded them of what God and his rule was really like.

Of the many wonderful descriptions Jesus gave, we find two stories about seeds in Mark 4:26-34 that describe the amazing, unstoppable growth of God’s kingdom on Planet Earth: The parable of the growing seed and the parable of the mustard seed. The point of both is that when the seed—representing the Word of God—is faithfully planted in good soil—representing the hearts of open and hungry people—the rule of God will begin to grow. Little by little, imperceptibly, over time the kingdom begins to expand, dominate and even perpetuate itself until it becomes a major, irresistible, governing force in individual lives, whole families, faith communities and entire people groups.

I hope that encourages you—it does me! Sometimes we get frustrated by the lack of growth of God’s kingdom in our lives, or our churches, or perhaps by what we may perceive as a falling away from the rule of God in our nation. To be sure, there are enemies and forces that not only resist the kingdom, but are actively working to kill it off. The truth is, the growth of the kingdom is not such an easy thing because there is a very strong Enemy whose chief objective is to stop it. Satan is alive and well on God’s planet, and he will be a force to be reckoned with until his time is up.

However, at the end of the day, the kingdom of God is unstoppable. People who claim to follow God may come and go, churches that once thrived may plateau, decline or perhaps even close their doors; denominations will rise and fall; nations will wander from the guiding principles that once made them a godly nation—and you might even find your own passion for the rule of God waxing and waning a bit. Yet the kingdom of God is doing just fine after 2,000 years since Jesus gave it its start. What began with twelve unlikely fishermen from Galilee has spread around the world to hundreds of millions today who have joyfully surrendered to God’s rule—and it shows no signs of abating.

So don’t get discouraged. You may not be able to see the seed growing, but it is—and it will. You may never see the end result, but that does not diminish the seed’s potential. Just keep planting that seed wherever you can. Water the soil—in your own life, in your family, your circle of influence and at your church. Keep the weeds pulled—it is a constant battle because the Enemy keeps sneaking into the field to sow tares.

Just stay faithful to the kingdom, don’t lose heart and never give up. You have a stake in something that is truly, indescribably amazing—and the full results of its growth as well as the fruit of its impact will not be known until the other side of eternity.

Yes, the grain will finally ripen!

“The seed once sown grows…of itself, from its own impulse and power of life….The self-inherent power of growth of the kingdom of God.” (Rudolph Stier)

So recommit your life to the kingdom of God today—especially if you have become discouraged by its lack of growth in your own life or its waning vitality in your church or some other circle of concern.

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, today I choose to place no value on anything I have or desire except in relationship to the rule of Christ in my life. So may your kingdom come, may your will be done in my life as it is in heaven. For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever! Amen.”
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Kingdom Killers

It’s Best To Deal Ruthlessly With Anything That’s Chokes God’s Rule In You

Are you concerned that the cares of life, the pursuit of wealth and the desire for things might be choking out God’s rule in your life? Then turn your worries over life into meditations on the goodness of God, start giving the wealth you’ve accumulated to kingdom endeavors, and just call it quits in your crazy effort to keep us with the Joneses. Choose to place no value on anything you have or desire except in its relationship to the rule of God in your life.

The Journey: Mark 4:18-19

The seed that fell among the thorns represents others who hear God’s word, but all too quickly the message is crowded out by the worries of this life, the lure of wealth, and the desire for other things, so no fruit is produced.

The proclamation of God’s Word—whether from pulpits, in casual conversations, or simply in quiet devotional time—is meant to produce Kingdom expansion in your life. That is, the Kingdom of God, which simply put, means the rule of God within you, is no static thing. It is either thriving and bearing fruit, or it is stunted and shriveling.

A critical question you and I must constantly ask ourselves is this: Is God’s Kingdom expanding in my life? Is God’s rule gaining ground in every detail of my world? Am I bearing fruit?

If the answer to those questions is “no”, or “not a whole lot”, then the culprit is one of three things Jesus identified as “kingdom killers” in this parable of the Sower: One, the cares of this world—that is, worry over the things we have to do. Two, the deceitfulness of wealth—that is, the wastefulness of pursuing money. Or three, the desires for other things—that is, what we would call, “keeping up with the Jones”.

Jesus antidote to these three “kingdom killers” is found in this classic verse from Matthew 6:33,

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things shall be added to you.

If you are caught up in the cares of this life, turn worry into meditation on the goodness of God. What is worry anyway, except thinking continually about things you cannot control? So why not simply train yourself to think continually about the things God can control (which is still hovering around 100%, by the way). Spend time this week reading and reflecting on Matthew 6:25-33…it will do wonders for you.

If you are getting sucked into the money trap, start giving away what you have. True wealth, along with the joy and satisfaction that comes from it, comes from leveraging your assets to resource the Kingdom of God. Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” (Luke 6:38, cf. Acts 20:35)

If you are in the rat race with the Joneses, just stop. Who cares? So what if they have a bigger house, a better car, and enjoy more exotic vacations than you! Do you think that will matter five minutes into eternity? Listen to Jesus’ sobering words in Luke 12:15-21,

And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses.” Then He spoke a parable to them, saying: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?’ So he said, ‘I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.”’ But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?’ “So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

Got any “kingdom killers” in your life? Try some holy weed killer—get into the rich soil of a generosity, passionate, focused heart toward God, and watch the Kingdom grow in your life.

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, today I choose to place no value on anything I have or desire except in relationship to the rule of Christ in my life.
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The Unforgivable Sin

The Only Sin You Won’t Be Forgiven For Is The One You Won’t Repent Of

Why did Jesus say some people can’t be forgiven? Not because God’s grace is withheld from them, but because with each rejection of his grace, they become increasingly incapable of responding to the Spirit of Grace. When we stubbornly refuse God’s stedfast promptings, with each such choice we become less willing and ultimately able to respond. The unforgivable sin is the persistent refusal to be forgiven! The only sin that can’t be forgiven is un-repentance.

The Journey: Mark 3:28-29

I tell you the truth, all sin and blasphemy can be forgiven, but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences.

Jesus revealed unlimited forgiveness through his death on the cross. By his atoning sacrifice, God’s great grace covers all our sin—with the exception of one: Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. That sin has been called unforgivable.

These three words—the unforgivable sin—have caused untold anguish to many who have misunderstood their meaning and thought they had committed this grievous sin of all sins. Maybe they had become angry in a time of bitter disappointment or loss and let their rage fly, cursing God. Perhaps they fell into a sin they had vowed to God never to commit again. Maybe they had toyed with something Satanic, or mocked the work of the Spirit in a church service, only then to be hit with the terrifying thought that they had insulted and blasphemed the Holy Spirit. Whatever the case, based on this passage, there are those who wonder if they are hopelessly and eternally damned.

One of the chief problems with this passage, however, is that the wrong people are usually the ones obsessing over it. It is usually those who have a high degree of moral sensitivity and care deeply about their relationship with God, or those who suffer the religious symptoms of an emotional imbalance who live under such guilt and fear. In both cases, a misunderstanding of the passage has created unnecessary pain.

The context of this confrontational encounter gives us a better understanding. Jesus had been performing many outstanding miracles (Mark 3:10-11, see also Matthew 12:22-30 and Luke 11:14-28), plainly evident for all to see. Most of the people were astounded by Jesus’ power over disease, demons and death, but out of sheer jealous and condescending elitism, the religious leaders scorned Jesus’ ministry as the work of the devil. So Jesus’ declaration of this unforgivable sin here is clearly a response to the sin of these few. It is not the sin of blurting out some momentary profanity or sacrilege against the Spirit of God. It’s the much more sinister offense of looking into the very face of Truth and calling it a lie. The teachers of the law were seeing the undeniable healing imprint of God’s Spirit and still deliberately calling it a work of Satan.

We need to understand that these leaders were not simply ignorant or perhaps confused in this matter; they knew exactly what they were doing. It is worth noting that verse 30 doesn’t translate very well from the Greek text in most English versions. An imperfect tense is used which suggests that theirs was a chronic attitude. In other words, they were continually declaring that Jesus had an evil spirit. This was not simply a spur-of-the-moment declaration, but an ongoing fixation.

Why couldn’t they be forgiven? Not because God’s grace was withheld from them, but because with each denial, they became increasingly incapable of responding to the Spirit of Grace.

Now here is the real danger in this—and the message for us who read this sobering text: When we deliberately choose a lie when confronted with God’s Truth, it is not that God then withholds his Truth—or his love and redemption for that matter—but that with each such deliberate choice, we become less able to respond to these graces.

So this brings us to the correct definition of the unforgivable sin: It is the steadfast refusal to be forgiven! The only sin that cannot be forgiven is un-repentance. Augustine said, “God has promised forgiveness to your repentance, but He has not promised tomorrow to your procrastination.” However, when we bring to God a soft and sorrowful heart, we find as King David did, that “a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” (Psalm 51:17)

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, create in me a tender heart. Keep me sensitive to the convicting work of your Spirit and cause me to always be quick to repent.
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Just Be With Jesus

The First Priority Of Your Walk With Christ

More than anything, we were created for an intimate relationship with God. Now there are certainly other things that will please God and bring glory to him through our lives, but nothing is more honoring to the Creator than to walk in a close, personal and loving relationship with his Son, Jesus Christ. Being in an all-consuming, life-altering journey that comes from persistently hanging out with Jesus as his devotee is the greatest calling and highest privilege we have as disciples.

The Journey: Mark 3:12-15

Jesus went up on a mountainside and called to him those he wanted, and they came to him. He appointed twelve that they might be with him and that he might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons.

More than anything, we were created for an intimate relationship with God. Now there are certainly other things that will please God and bring glory to him through our lives, but nothing is more honoring to the Creator than to walk in a close, personal and loving relationship with him.

According to the Bible, the only way that gets expressed is by knowing Jesus: by being in an all-consuming, life-altering journey that comes from persistently hanging out with Jesus as his devotee. In fact, the Apostle John, the one who knew and loved Jesus as much as any human being ever, said this was, in itself, eternal life.

Acts 4:13 shows us the inevitable outcome of being in that kind of intimate, persistent, loving relationship: “When the Jewish council saw Peter and John’s courage and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.”

Peter and John had simply “been with Jesus” until they looked and acted increasingly like him—they had assumed his mindset, absorbed his characteristics and expressed his behavior. They had hung out so closely in such an intense way with Jesus that they had absorbed him to the point they were now exuding him without even thinking about it. They had been transformed through that relationship and conformed to that relationship!

That is what you and I were created to experience: A relationship with Jesus whereby his life gets transmitted to us, and through us, so that we begin to transmit the infectious DNA of Jesus Christ.

You may not have a religious pedigree or be well-versed in theology. You may not be naturally winsome, or articulate, or even all that likeable. Your “cool factor” may be pretty much non-existent. Maybe you lack more than you have. That doesn’t matter! What you do have trumps all you don’t have: You have every possibility that Peter and John had to “be with Jesus”.

That is the greatest goal you can have—that at the end of the day, the only thing people can do with you is to take note that you have been with Jesus. They may not like you or be impressed with you and they may wish you would just go away. But when it is all said and done, all they can do with you it to admit, “obviously, you have been hanging with Jesus!”

Make that your goal today. And then start hanging with Jesus. Pure and simple—that is eternal life!

You were made for that! The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:29, “From the beginning God decided that those who came to Him should become like His Son.” That is God’s inexorable plan: to make you like Jesus! He is orchestrating everything in your life right now for that purpose—circumstances, disappointments, temptations, opportunities, blessings. At this very moment, God is leveraging heaven’s resources to conform your character to Christ’s. That ought to give you confidence. As A.W. Tozer noted, “When I understand that everything happening to me is to make me more Christlike, it resolves a great deal of anxiety.”

So your journey into Christlikeness is not all up to you! God is rearranging heaven and moving earth to give you opportunity to be with Jesus—and to become like Jesus.

Yet divine transformation needs human collaboration. In a way, being with Jesus is on you! It is not just a mindset or a good intention. It is an intentional posture. As much as anything, to get intentional with your growth toward Christlikeness will require of you the daily practice of being with Jesus.

Divine transformation requires human collaboration!

I would simply suggest that each day—and throughout the day—you literally invite Jesus to join you in what is in front of you. Literally ask Jesus, “How would you handle this situation? What do you think about this opportunity? What should I do about this challenge? How would you respond to this person?” Just practice being with Jesus in the ordinary moments of your daily life.

To get practical with this, think about it this way: If you were to literally spend time with Jesus, what three attributes, attitudes and or actions would you witness in him?

For me, when I think of what Jesus would be doing in any one of his ordinary days: One, he would be unbendingly truthful yet incredibly gracious with people. Two, he would serve people—especially those we would consider the least worthy of his service. And three, even when he was treated unfairly, he would never retaliate; he would only offer love and grace in return.

Gracious, serving, forgiving—there are thousands of descriptives I could come up with—you too. So take a moment and write down the first three qualities of Jesus that come to your mind. Then your assignment this week will be to intentionally hang out with Jesus, consciously and consistently doing those three things you wrote down that you believe Jesus would do. Give that your best shot, and most likely, you will look a little more like Christ by this time next week!

And maybe people will take note that you have been with Jesus.

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, give me the courage and the determination to make secondary things second to the primary duty I have to just spend time being with Jesus. There is no greater thing. Doing will come, but first, help me just to be.
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Jesus’ Outrageous Claim

He Gave A Pretty Convincing Proof That He Was God

With Jesus, you’ve got to eliminate “just” from your vocabulary—just a good teacher, just a great moral leader, just a respected prophet, just a great figure of history The real, Biblical Jesus pulled those options off the table. Nope—he was who he, himself, said he was: God the Son, Second Person of the Holy Trinity. When you examine the evidence, you cannot honestly accept any other possibility.

The Journey: Mark 2:5-7

Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!”

“Who is Jesus, really?” That’s a great question. In fact, it is the question of questions—a question that every human being will have to answer in this life, or in the next. Here is what I believe about Jesus:

I believe in his deity, in his virgin birth, in his sinless life, in his miracles, in his vicarious and atoning death through the blood he shed on the cross, in his bodily resurrection from the dead, in his ascension to the right hand of the Father, and in his personal return in power and glory one day—hopefully very soon.

Now where did I come up with all those outlandish assertions about Jesus? Well, from Jesus himself. Throughout the Gospels, he made some pretty outrageous claims about himself—including the one quoted above from Mark 2:5-7 when he told the paralyzed man that his sins were forgiven.

Jesus was clearly claiming divine status, since only God has the standing to forgive sin. That’s what the teachers of the law were miffed about: “Only God can forgive sins!”, they said.

So how did Jesus respond to their challenge? He said, “Yeah, and your point is?” Then he healed the crippled man just to make his point:

“So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!” And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. (Mark 2:10-12, NLT)

Now I would say that was a pretty convincing attribute of deity, wouldn’t you!

When you consider the claims Jesus made about himself, you’ve got to eliminate most of the nice-sounding, politically-correct things people say they believe about him. In other words, Jesus can’t be just a good teacher, just a great moral leader, just a respected prophet, just a great figure of history.

With Jesus, you’ve got to eliminate “just” from your vocabulary. The real, Biblical Jesus pulled those options off the table. Nope—he was who he, himself, said he was: God the Son, Second Person of the Holy Trinity. When you examine the evidence, you cannot honestly accept any other possibility. As C.S. Lewis argued,

The discrepancy between the depth and sanity of his moral teaching and the rampant megalomania which must lie behind his theological teaching unless he is indeed God has never been satisfactorily got over.

The most important piece of evidence to me, however, is that of untold millions, if not billions of people, who have experienced dramatic life-changes over the past 2,000 years because of this man who proved himself to be God. And I was one of them. Like the paralyzed man, I, too, was healed and forgiven. I have been forever changed by Jesus—and I will be eternally grateful!

Yep—no doubt about it: Jesus is God!

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, I join with the untold millions of believers around the world today to lift up the name of your One and Only Son and declare that he is Jesus, Son of God, Savior, Lord and soon coming King. May his name be forever praised.
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Desperate For God

What All Would You Do To Have All Of God

How desperate is your faith? Not very, you say. Perhaps that’s the reason God doesn’t seem to do as much in our lives as we read about in the Bible or hear about in third-world Christianity. When we become truly desperate for God, maybe we will see God move as he did in days of old. May the God who waits to be wanted set us ablaze with a desperate desire for his holy presence!

The Journey: Mark 2:2-5

Soon the house where Jesus was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.”

I am not recommending that you knock over the pews to get to the altar or anything, but I wonder what you would be willing to do just to touch Jesus—either for yourself or someone you care about very deeply. I personally like things a little more calm and controlled than that, but there was just something about a person’s holy desperation that seemed to move Jesus to action:

The blind man named Bartimaeus who wouldn’t shut up until Jesus healed him…

Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.”Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road. (Mark 10:46-52)

The Canaanite woman who wouldn’t back down just to get Jesus to deliver her demonized daughter…

A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.” The woman came and knelt before him. “Lord, help me!” she said. He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.” “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment. (Matthew 15:22-28)

The woman with the issue of blood that pressed through the crowd just to touch Jesus …

A large crowd followed Jesus and pressed around him. And a woman was there who had been subject to bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse. When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering. At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched my clothes?” “You see the people crowding against you,” his disciples answered, “and yet you can ask, ‘Who touched me?’” But Jesus kept looking around to see who had done it. Then the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came and fell at his feet and, trembling with fear, told him the whole truth. He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.” (Mark 5:24-34)

The guy named Zacchaeus who shimmied up a tree just to see Jesus…

Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but because he was short he could not see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see him, since Jesus was coming that way. When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.” So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount.” Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:1-10)

So how desperate is your faith?

Not very, you say. Well, perhaps that is the reason God doesn’t seem to do as much in your life, and mine, as we read about in Scripture or hear about in third-world Christianity. When we become truly desperate for God, maybe we will see God move as he did in days of old. A.W. Tozer said,

The stiff and wooden quality about our religious lives is a result of our lack of holy desire. Complacency is a deadly foe of all spiritual growth. Acute desire must be present or there will be no manifestation of Christ to His people. He waits to be wanted.

May the God who waits to be wanted set us a blaze with a desperate desire for his holy presence!

A Simple Prayer To Be More Like Jesus:

God, create in my holy desperation! Give me the kind of desperation of the men in Mark 2: enough zeal for your healing touch that they ripped open a roof to get in front of Jesus. I confess that I am pretty dull to you right now, but I don’t want to stay there. Ignite a flame of passion for you, and fan it into a raging zeal for your presence and your power.