Are we too familiar with Jesus?

Impact message summer 08 Mark 5:21-6:6
Are we too familiar with Jesus?

21 And when Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered about him, and he was beside the sea. 22 Then came one of the rulers of the synagogue, Jairus by name, and seeing him, he fell at his feet 23 and implored him earnestly, saying, “My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well and live.” 24 And he went with him.
And a great crowd followed him and thronged about him. 25 And there was a woman who had had a discharge of blood for twelve years, 26 and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. 27 She had heard the reports about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. 28 For she said, “If I touch even his garments, I will be made well.” 29 And immediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone out from him, immediately turned about in the crowd and said, “Who touched my garments?” 31 And his disciples said to him, “You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, ‘Who touched me?’ ” 32 And he looked around to see who had done it. 33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him and told him the whole truth. 34 And he said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.”
35 While he was still speaking, there came from the ruler’s house some who said, “Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the Teacher any further?” 36 But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.” 37 And he allowed no one to follow him except Peter and James and John the brother of James. 38 They came to the house of the ruler of the synagogue, and Jesus saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 39 And when he had entered, he said to them, “Why are you making a commotion and weeping? The child is not dead but sleeping.” 40 And they laughed at him. But he put them all outside and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was. 41 Taking her by the hand he said to her, “Talitha cumi,” which means, “Little girl, I say to you, arise.” 42 And immediately the girl got up and began walking (for she was twelve years of age), and they were immediately overcome with amazement. 43 And he strictly charged them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.

Jesus Rejected at Nazareth
6 He went away from there and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. 2 And on the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands? 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 And Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.” 5 And he could do no mighty work there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and healed them. 6 And he marveled because of their unbelief.
And he went about among the villages teaching.
Mk 5:21-6:6


Maybe you know Jesus too well? Maybe you are too familiar with Him? So much so that he is not honored in your life?
Could that really be your problem? Too much knowledge of Jesus? What do I mean by that?
Two groups
Let’s take a look at two groups of people in the verses we read today, and let’s ask what one of these two groups we are most like. This is really what I want for you today- to see what group here you are most like, and in seeing that, to learn what you must change.

Group one
The first group is found in the end of chapter 5 of Mark. First we have Jairus, a man whose daughter is sick, and he comes and falls down before Jesus. He is a well respected man, a leader, one of the religious elite among the Jews. And he falls at Jesus’ feet.
Second we have a sick woman. She is of little value in her culture. She is perhaps not well known. If she once was rich, she isn’t anymore, because she has spent all her money on a fix to her problem. It has not come. And now she is desperate, she has heard of this Jesus, this healer- and only if she can touch him- no- just touch his garments, just a corner of his cloak. That’s all.

Do you have anything in common with these two people. Let’s not even look at the fact that both of them got what they wanted from Christ. Let’s just look at a few things about them that I think really make them stand out.

1- both of them realized that they had a desperate need.
Their need was so obvious. It hurt them, it was life changing. To be sick, so sick that you didn’t know if you would live. To have a loved one, a dear loved one sick, and perhaps going to die, perhaps soon. This is a need like no other. Neither of these two could ignore the need they had, and it hurt.
Are you like that at all? Do you have a need? Any need at all? A need that is so big that you are desperate for it to be fixed? I think that sometimes some of us have understanding that we are needy, but I wonder if we have all come to see our biggest needs. What is your biggest need? Friends? Momentary comfort? Popularity? The approval of people? Removal of sin? Love for God? Mercy? Healing in your heart? What is it? Do you see a need in your life, a great need?


2- both of them realized that Jesus could meet that need, and knew the cost of seeking Him out.
They realized the need, and that Christ was the only solution to that need. And they realized the cost of seeking out Jesus to have that need met.
For the woman, we don’t know all that that meant. It might seem at first that it was very easy for her to come to Jesus. What else did she have to lose? Yet, it was costly. Can you imagine telling your family you are done with doctors, you are going to go to this faith healer to be made well? What kind of a reaction would that bring? Especially one like Jesus, so controversial in his time.
But with the synagogue leader we find a clear display of the cost. This man is well known and well respected. A leader in the synagogue- he has a religion, he has a God, he has a faith. He has priests. He has connections. What is it going to look like if he goes and falls at the feet of the teacher who is fighting against the very system he represents? What humility would this take? He is ending many friendships, destroying much of his influence. He will lose a ton of approval by this act. There is cost here.
What has it cost you to be His follower? Have you had a need that you have seen, a great need, and you have gone to Christ to have it met, and it has cost you? Are you like these people?

And both of them realize that Jesus is the only hope they have. There is nothing else to go to. This man knows this, and he has no time to waste. The woman knows this so well. She has spent all she has to find a cure for her problems. Are you like that? Have you looked everywhere else to find a cure for your needs? Have you looked everywhere else to be satisfied, to have love and life? And have you found all other places leave you empty?

This is where we find this first group- knowing their need, and seeing Christ as the only way to fix what is wrong, and they go to him, no matter what the cost, they go.
Is that like you?
Or are you like group two?

Group two
Our second group is in chapter 6, the first few verses.
Jesus goes home and speaks in the synagogue in his hometown. And the people in his town, they are the second group. And they have a really interesting reaction to Jesus. They do not seem to see any need for Jesus at all. In fact, we find out two things about this group of people. When Jesus stands up and speaks to them, and they see the wisdom he has, and when they hear of the great miracles he has performed, they do two things.
First, they are offended by him. And second, according to Jesus, they dishonor Him.

Why? Why are they offended, and why do they dishonor him? And before I tell you why, let me tell you that I believe that we often have way too much in common with this group, and I wonder if our lives dishonor him, and I wonder if we are offended by him. Let me explain.

The reason they are offended by him is that they knew him too well. Or so they thought. Think about it. Imagine you are one of these people, and Jesus comes to your village. You know him. Maybe you grew up with him. Maybe you were friends with his mom and dad. He made the table in your home, or maybe he once repaired the plow you use with your oxen. You played with him in the streets as a kid. Or you were one of his family. You ate breakfast with him. You heard him cry as a baby. In other words, you are very familiar with Jesus. You think you know him so very well. Maybe you think you know him better than most people. You know Jesus- and everything on the surface looks good- you look like people from Jesus’ home town. His close friends, His family. Everything looks great!
And he comes back home, you haven’t seen him for a year or two, and now he claims to be some great leader. There are rumors that he is doing all kinds of miracles. And he comes to your town, has the nerve to speak and teach in the synagogue as if he is someone, and he does so with great authority. He shares all these wise words, and challenging things. He comes to your town as if he had some great importance.
This offends you. How dare he think he is all that important? Who does he really think he is? This is just Jesus- the one you know so well. He does not deserve such special treatment. And what claims he makes! He is really suggesting that he- HE- is the Messiah? The Savior that is coming into the world? Right- the guy who fixed my plow is the savior of the world. Get real. And now he expects me to honor him? Yeah, right.
That is what they are thinking guys. They know him so well, that they cant honor him. They are locked into their own little view of who he is, and they cant see the real Jesus. And the Jesus that they know, that they think they know, he does not deserve such honor as this. He does not deserve to make such demands of us. There is no way we are going to think that we need him, that is for sure. What could we need from him? This Jesus claims to be our savior?! Come on! No way!


Just like us?
And that is us. Too often, that is us. We all think we know him, and maybe we did not grow up in Jesus’ home, but maybe as we grew up Jesus was in our homes. He was talked about, we went to church, we heard all about him. Even if he wasn’t talked about in our homes, we live in a world where he is talked about, and we all formed opinions about this Jesus. We know him, we are familiar with him. He is the one we pray to before we eat. He is the one we sing to on Sunday morning. He is the one we talked about with those friends of ours who did not go to church. We know Jesus. He is the one we think about at Christmas when we give each other gifts. He is the reason we have VBS, and why we read our bibles. We know him very well.

But what I am suggesting is perhaps we are a bit like this second group, in that we grew up with him for sure, and we think we know him very well, but really we are missing a huge part of who he is. We feel no need, and there has been little or no cost in going to him. If in fact we have ever gone to him for anything at all.


How can we know?
Is there some way for us to tell if we are like this second group? Yes. Not only can we look to see if we have ever really gone to Jesus with a desperate need that only he can fill, but we can ask if we are offended by Him.
What I mean is, when Christ comes and suggests to you that your life honor Him, are you offended by his request? When he suggests you need him to be a savior for you, do you believe it? This is helpful, because when Jesus is demanding a level of honor that we do not want to give, either Jesus is assuming too much, that he really deserves something that we know he doesn’t, or the truth is he is much different than we think, and if we saw what he really was, we would not hesitate to give him that honor.
So how do you respond to his request to be honored in your life?

A request to be honored
Here is where we get so much wrong. We do not understand the requests he is making. Let me share them with you. This is one of the things impact is here to do- to come to those who maybe are like those who are in his hometown, and reveal who he really is saying he is, and what he really is suggesting that you do for him. How you should honor Him. Because when we look at the honor he requests and see how our heart reacts, it tells us so much about where we are in relation to him. It tells us if we are in that second group.

What is the honor that he requests from you? Are you willing to give it? Are you giving it currently? Let’s look at it- but ask yourself- as you hear his requests, and what He demands, are you offended? Ask yourself if you are surprised to hear these things. Maybe you have a Jesus you are very familiar with, who makes few demands on your life, but who really is not the real Jesus at all.
So let’s look at what Jesus himself said- and I want you to see it is Him saying it, not me. I don’t want you to be able to make any excuses as to what this all means, because you live in a world where there are so many excuses as to why this all does not have to be. And when you hear these you might hear them differently than what they really mean. You might have a very tame, easy way to understand what I am about to read. Or you may have no idea how badly you don’t honor him in these ways, because you refuse to examine your life, and your heart, and see what is important to you. But listen to what Jesus says-


37 Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.Mt 10:37-39


25 Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, 26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Lk 14:25-26

33 So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.Lk 14:33

Jesus demands that the love that we have for Him be greater than the love we have for all other things. Maybe “demands” is not the right word- Jesus explains that if we really know Him, then the love that we have for Him WILL be greater than all other loves. And will lead us to be able to say “I will renounce all things.”
Have you done that? Have you renounced all things? Just like the blank check that John talked about this morning- are you able right now to go to God and open your hands up, and say ‘take anything, I am completely yours”?
Listen, does it seem crazy to you that Jesus might ask you to not laugh at sin? Watch certain movies? Stop caring what certain people think of you? Stop trying to meet what the world says is beauty? Dress in a way that you look different than the world? Spend your summer at a camp, in 90 degree weather, for little pay, to tell kids about Christ? Call everyone who is of impact age and remind them to come out because you want them to know the truth, and you want to show them you love them? Spend time with believers talking about God and praying, and not just acting like the rest of the world does when they are together? Do you look for excuses to not do those things, because they seem really hard? They seem too much? The Jesus you know doesn’t demand them, right? And you are offended by the suggestion that you should give them up? Or more than that- what if I said to you, guys, let’s start a revolution. Lets all, those who are here right now, commit to living life differently. Let’s not just meet for impact- let’s meet to discuss and plan how to impact this church, this community, this world for Christ, and let’s start by helping one another grow closer to God. Is that crazy? Would it be worth it to you?

If we look at our hearts and see this lack of an honoring of Him, if we think that we would be offended by such requirements, if we think maybe we don’t love him most, maybe we really just don’t know him. We have not seen a need for him, a need that only he can meet, and we haven’t, at great cost, gone to him to have that need met.

We are too familiar with Jesus. How could Jesus expect such a dramatic change in us? Isn't this the guy we know so well? Why should he require such things? It’s just Jesus. Right? He doesn’t want all that. We know plenty of people who follow him who love a lot of things more than him, right? They aren’t so serious about Jesus. So why should we be?
Friends, you may have not met him.

Knowing the wrong Jesus
We think so wrongly about Jesus. We think we know him, but we don’t. We miss out on so much that he is because we stop looking to know him- we think we already do. Maybe we don’t. I have tried to explain this to you in the past months. Maybe we don’t know him. To know him means radical, life changing decisions. It means living life as a revolutionary, seeking change in the world. Are you doing that? Where is the change you are seeking? What change are you seeking? Oh, if we would only see the real Jesus.
Like the second group, we think “can the guy who repaired my plow really be the savior of the world?” Can He really demand such honor as that?
So let’s try and think rightly about Jesus. let's think differently- not, "can the Jesus who made my plow really be the savior of the world?", but, "can the maker of the sun really care to know my name?"
not "can the Jesus who's name I have sung since I was five, and has really never changed me, really expect me to live for him like that?", but instead, "can the God of lightning and thunder, who I have doubted and dishonored from birth, really be willing to die for me? really be willing to have a personal, close, relationship with me?"

The real Jesus
Let’s look at the real Jesus. I know many times you have looked at Jesus, many times you have heard of Him, and sung of Him, and thought about Him. Please, stop and consider. Who is this real Jesus? Don’t just think you know Him.
To look at the real Jesus, to see the real Jesus, you first have to see your real need.

Need for a savior
What is your real, deepest need, the one that is greater than all others? From an eternal perspective, your greatest need is far more than you might think. People often see their needs as very small and temporary. You ask them what they need prayer for, and it’s for a test coming up, or a small problem they have with a friend, all fine things to pray for- but do we see our greatest need. Sometimes we are like people in a great ship that is slowly sinking. It is in frigid water, and it is going down, and when it sinks we will be dead. Like the Titanic- imagine those on board the titanic, as it sunk, imagine one of them coming to you and asking you for help with picking out an outfit for the party that night. Or asking for advice as to how to handle some other small problem. Wouldn’t you want to point out to them that the boat is sinking, and those things really didn’t matter if they ended up in the cold water?
Do you really understand your need, the need that every one of us in this room was born with? You were born with a tremendous debt, and that debt has accumulated since your birth. You owe someone something. You owe a debt that is too great for words. It is as if I came to you and told you that you owe me a hundred billion dollars. I need it by tomorrow, or you are going to jail. It is just a hopeless situation. You see, you owe God, you have offended Him with sin, and you owe Him. The penalty is so great, the debt is so big, he, in His wisdom, has decided that it should take not 100 years of punishment to make up for it, not 1000 years. Not one hundred thousand years, and not one million years. Not one billion years, not even one hundred million billion billion years could make up for it. He sees your debt- think about this- the debt that you carry with you right now- He sees that debt as infinite. You may not understand it perfectly, but you have offended God with your hatred of Him and rebellion in such a way that He has judged you, and His judgment is just. His conclusion is that your penalty should be an infinite punishment. You shall, without end, be jailed for your offense. You will spend forever paying, because you cant, even with forever, pay it off. It is like going to a toddler, or a small child, and asking them for billions of dollars. Imagine a child’s parents are killed in some tragic accident, and the ruler of that country was owed money by the parents, and now comes to the little child and demands the payment. The child cant make it. They don’t even have one, dollar, they have nothing of what is needed to pay the debt. Nothing. That is you. The currency, the type of payment that is needed, you do not own it. It is foreign to you.
Do you know what it takes to pay it? Blood. Blood pays for sin. And you think that’s fine, you have blood. Don’t you? Oh, you do. But not the right kind. Your blood is tainted. You are sinful. It takes pure blood, untainted blood. You will spend forever paying with your blood, because it is not enough. It is not the right kind. It will never work. Pure, perfect, unspotted blood is what is needed to pay our debt. And maybe you try and make something unspotted in your life. Maybe you try really hard to make one good deed, one good thing that God will look at and say “ah, yes, NOW you are welcome into my home. Now you will be forgiven.” No, it cant be. You can not make even one drop of blood that will qualify. It is hopeless. There is such freedom in hearing this- listen, you can not make one drop of what you need, stop trying. Instead, realize this-

18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 1 Pe 1:18-19

What a debt you have! One you can never pay. You need help, you need a savior. And one comes for you, and He spills His perfect, spotless, precious blood for you, on your behalf! This is your need! And this is the savior! Have you ever gone to Him as that savior, and asked that that blood would count for you?


The lover of your soul
And then when we understand our need, then we can see who He is. Because he is the Savior we need. And he is so much more. He is not just the savior of our souls- He is the lover of our souls. He did not come and spill his blood for you because he hates you. He loves. And we need to think on and understand that love if we are to know the real Jesus.
We need to understand the care He has for us.
The thing is, you know you want love. You know that you long for a real, true love. And that longing is really a longing for Him. When you think of falling asleep, and being wrapped up with, and close, to one who loves you so much, and who you love so much, it is no person you long for. It is no human approval you wish for. At the heart of what you long for is this God, this Jesus- His comforting love is what you really want to hold you, and be near you. Your heart aches to be near Him. It was made for it. So understand, all you who know the ache in your heart- you who think you know Jesus, and He is this cold, separate God that you heard about, this God who is so far away, so not close- listen to me- He came so far from His home, and walked your world, to show you He is closer than you think. He is here. He is with you, in this very room, He is everywhere, all the time. He is not just someone to be honored in that we fall before Him, and worship Him, but that in we love Him, in a personal, genuine, deep way- because that is real worship. He is the lover of your soul. I don’t mean that its about you and he is falling all over himself to be with you, I mean that He really does genuinely love, and His love is perfect, and it is beautiful.
Just imagine, His love for you is free. It is a love that is full of grace. There is nothing in us for which we should be loved. There is nothing that you have that makes him love you, His love is of his own free will, he willingly, on his own, apart from you, casts his great love on you. And it is unchanging. Eternal, free, and unchanging. This is His love for you. But don’t just believe it is true, believe it is true for you. Believe this is His heart toward you, and accept it. Really think that in your head- that you accept that great love, and you open your heart to this love, and you embrace it, and then, then you will see this real Jesus, your savior, your king, the lover of your soul. Greater than anything you can imagine is His power, beyond anything you can think is His Holiness and Majesty- the starry hosts bow to Him, the waters obey Him, the demons fear him, the grave could not hold Him, all the universe is sustained by the power of His very words, and yet His love longs to hold you tonight in your bed while you sleep.
Reflect on that a moment with this song-

By your side
Why are you striving these days
Why are you trying to earn grace
Why are you crying, Let me lift up your face
Just don't turn away

Why are you looking for love
Why are you still searching as if I'm not enough
To where will you go child, Tell me where will you run
To where will you run

And I'll be by your side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Look at these hands and my side
They swallowed the grave on that night
When I drank the world's sin
So I could carry you in
And give you life
I want to give you life

And I'll be by your side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you

Cause I, I love you
I want you to know
That I, I love you
I'll never let you go

And I'll be by your side wherever you fall
In the dead of night whenever you call
And please don't fight these hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you


Respond
So, are you offended when he comes to you and says “love me most. That is what should happen when you really know me, really see me. love me most. More than anything else. Hate those things that offend me. Hate those things that are the opposite of what I am and make light of what I say. Love me so much that I am all that really matters. Because I AM all that really matters.”

Do you know the real Jesus? Are you too familiar with him, and have your own little safe Jesus that you can do what you want with? Or do you see your need, and see this savior, and understand the Lover of your soul?

What should you do? Accept this love, and ask Him to be your savior. Fall in love with Him.