Mark 2

During times of cascading badness, friends sometimes need to believe for those caught in the crush of seriously bad stuff. Phil Ware reminds us of Mark's story about Jesus and the four friends who dug a hole in the roof to get their buddy to Jesus.

Who really wants these folks in church? Jesus, of course! When a mega-pastor says he wants to get rid of the kooks that weigh his church down, Vann is not only shocked, but prays that God sends the kooks to his church.

Can anyone actually speak with real authority today? Russ Lawson reminds us that while some words are balderdash and came to us through crazy circumstances, Jesus words are the opposite: he speaks with real authority.

Could it be that we are more afraid of being contaminated by the world than motivated by Jesus to be salt and light? Phil Ware reminds us that we want to not only share in the Lord's Supper, but we also want our table to be like Levi's table of grace and friendship.

Will we make the Lord's Table like Levi's table? Phil Ware reminds us that we want to not only share in the Lord's Supper, but we also want our table to be like Levi's table of grace and friendship.

What would you do to help a friend? The best friends bring their friends to Jesus to be blessed and helped.

"Jesus knew immediately [that the religious teachers were accusing him of blasphemy], so he asked them, "Why do you question this in your hearts? Is it..."

"While [Jesus] 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..."

They're unsettling. They're uncomfortable. They're troubling. So, we don't ask, at least not out loud! Phil Ware asks a bunch of troubling questions as he looks at the story of Jesus and his call of Levi and the party Levi had at his house afterwords.

"Later, Levi invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. (There were....."

"Jesus said to [the Pharisees], "Haven't you ever read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He went into the house...."

"Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, "My child, your sins are forgiven." But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting...."

What would you not do to save the life of a friend? Phil Ware talks about four friends who dig a hole in the roof to get their friend to Jesus so he could be healed; so what would we be willing to do to get our friends to Jesus to be saved?

Pursue Jesus. Completely pursue him. You will notice that while you are not religious, you are being drawn to a holy character and gracious compassion that religion longs to impart, but cannot! Phil Ware continues looking at the gospel of Mark and reminds us that Jesus isn't a patch on religion or a new joy to infuse old and stale religion; he is an altogether all new thing.

"When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed...."

"[When asked why his disciples didn't fast,] Jesus replied, "Do wedding guests fast while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. They can't fast..."

"Then Jesus went out to the lakeshore again and taught the crowds that were coming to him. As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at....."

"[Jesus continued,] "Besides, who would patch old clothing with new cloth? For the new patch would shrink and rip away from the old cloth, leaving an....."

"One Sabbath day as Jesus was walking through some grainfields, his disciples began breaking off heads of grain to eat. But the Pharisees said to..."

Why the connection between Jesus and 'the leftovers' and why does the modern church not have the same relationships? Phil Ware reminds us that our times at the Lord's Table should be filled with the same kind of people who joined Jesus at the table when he was on earth!

"[Jesus said,] "So the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!""

"And the man [who was healed] jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God,..."

"Faith is full of inventions. The house was full, a crowd blocked up the door, but faith found a way of getting at the Lord and placing the palsied man..."

"Once when John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting, some people came to Jesus and asked, "Why don't your disciples fast like John's disciples....."

Inevitably, the darkness will weigh on them, exhaust them, and feel altogether overwhelming to them. Then, they can come to the light to re-charge, but they can't glow in the light! Jordan Harrell learned from her son's fascination with glow-in-the-dark spiders that we are made to shine in darkness, not sit under a light.

Is rest really necessary for holy and whole living? Phil Ware talks about the importance of rest and the Sabbath principle.

How badly have you missed it or messed it up? Tom Norvell reminds us to praise God for what he has done in our lives, not explain it away.

Are you fit to attend this church? Sometimes we need to be reminded that church is a place for sick and broken people, not perfect ones.

Should we mix and match, hold on to the past, or change — how do we know? Ruble Shelly helps think through some of the challenges of change!

Jesus invites us into a time of rest and quiet with him! Phil Ware shares part 2 in his four part series on learning to rest in Jesus and trust in the Lord's power to bless us and give us grace.

Do you rest at least one day per week? Paul Faulkner reminds us that we need to rest 1 in 7 if we are going to fully experience life and be productive.

Are you ready for the big wedding? Phil Ware concludes his series on Church to Kingdom, C2K, and reminds us that as Jesus' people, we are the bride of Christ and need to be ready for our wedding.

Why does Jesus' ministry begin with John? Phil Ware continues his series on The Story and reminds us that we can all be John the Baptist, the baptizer, to people around us.

What kind of Being acceptable to Jesus is not like getting a house ready to sell.

Do we have to be We mustn't let our feelings of inadequacy keep us from going to the One who can make us perfect.

Take time to reboot and let God do the rest with you. Patrick Odum reminds us of the importance to rest, to have a Sabbath, to reboot.