“OUR COMFORT ZONE”

  Mark 1: 14-17

 

We have several devices in our house we can hold in our hand, one of the most powerful devices known to man. And this most powerful device is…a remote control!  Why, with the buttons on this keypad, we can control a part of our world! We can turn things off - we can turn things on - we can make things louder when we want to. And similarly, we can make things softer. We can even mute the minister when he’s talking. And most importantly, we can change channels!

 

There’s an awful lot of bad news around. And its not just what we see on television. We experience it every time we open our eyes in the morning and wake up to our lives as they are. Loneliness. Loss. Illness. Guilt. Broken friendships. Broken marriages. Broken hearts. There’s a lot of bad news that comes our way every day.

 

All around us today are people who have been beaten up by life – women, children and men. And the bad news they’ve experienced has bruised them to the point where they can’t trust other people. Can’t love other people. Can’t even believe in themselves anymore.  Oh, there’s lots of bad news out there!

 

Which brings us to our Scripture reading from the Gospel of Mark 1: 14-17.  Did you hear it? Listen to the opening line:  “Jesus went into Galilee proclaiming the GOOD NEWS…”  Isn’t that a remarkable statement? First of all, Jesus went into Galilee – and Galilee means more than just a province in Israel. Galilee is where the people live. Galilee is the world as you and I know it. Galilee is the place where the BAD NEWS touches the lives of real people like you and me every day.

 

And notice what Jesus brings into this world that is overflowing with BAD NEWS.

“Jesus went into Galilee proclaiming the GOOD NEWS…”! Oh, of all the many reasons I believe this Christian Faith is a faith worth finding, one of the most important is that it brings GOOD NEWS to people in the midst of all the BAD NEWS that surrounds us every day.

 

And here’s what this Good News is, according to Jesus. “The kingdom of heaven is at hand!” This God who created you and me loves us so immensely that, in every situation – even when the news is very, very bad – He finds a way to draw near to give us what we need to make it through, and to assure us that all things will be made beautiful in God’s time.

 

And what do we have to do to connect our lives to that future? Jesus said, “Repent and believe the good news.” Notice that Jesus did not say, “Turn around and believe in Reformed theology?” Jesus didn’t say, “Turn around and believe in premillenial, mid-tribulation - Jesus didn’t even say, “Believe in miracles, or believe in the Bible.  Jesus said, “Repent and believe the GOOD NEWS!”

 

Believe the GOOD NEWS that you are loved with an everlasting love! Believe the GOOD NEWS that your life counts for something! Believe the GOOD NEWS that your pain will not be forever, your loss will not be permanent, your failure will not be ultimate, and that your enemies will not triumph over you!  Come and believe the best about yourself! Come and believe good things for your family! Come and dream beautiful dreams for your church, and community and world!

 

>))):>  In "HIS" Service    Bro. Roy