The Gospel of Mark: Sent To The World

This passage marks a turning point in Jesus’ ministry. Before this, only Jesus preached the gospel message, healed diseases, performed miracles, cast out demons, and confronted the hard-hearted unbelief of Israel’s religious establishment. All that changed when he authorized the twelve apostles to go out and do the same in his name. Like any good leader, Jesus multiplies his ministry by training his followers, and then sending them out. The word Apostle means messenger, and now this core group of Jesus’ disciples are going to earn their title.

When Jesus said, "Come follow me," little did His disciples know what was in store for them. Perhaps they had a clue when Jesus said that He would make them "fishers of men." Now the time had come for their evangelistic ministry to begin. Though they would not be fully equipped and empowered for that task until the coming of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, their ministry internship began here.

This is the Church’s first generation of gospel preachers. Our text this evening speaks of those who were sent into the world at the command of Jesus. The general principles found in this passage outline for the Church what we should expect from faithful ministers of the gospel.

I. THE MESSENGERS

1. we first need to turn our attention to the messengers of the King

"And He summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs..." (v. 7a)

a. the implication of vs. 7 is that Jesus did not send them all at once, but staggered their send-off over a brief period of time

2. Jesus called His disciples to Himself and sent them out to the world to be a witness

a. the Church and its ministers do not carry their own message, nor preach their own words

b. our message is, and must be, the good news of Jesus — God through His Christ offers saving grace to sinners

3. how do we prepare to share our faith — weather it is through a sermon or through personal witness

A. THE PREPARATION OF THE MESSENGERS

1. the Apostles had been prepared because they were His followers — they were disciples

a. they had chosen to follow Jesus and learn from Him

b. now they were about to be given an opportunity to take what they had learned and put it into practice

2. because they had spent time with Jesus, they were now qualified to share what had become real to them

a. this was their primary preparation — it’s still our primary preparation

Illus. In the third chapter of Acts, we have the account of Peter and John healing a lame man. He had been crippled from birth according to the story. Peter tells him, Silver and gold we don’t have, but in the name of Jesus, I’ll give you what I got — in the name of Jesus, arise and walk.” And the guy got up and walked. Then they go into the Temple and Peter preaches a whale of a sermon. The result is that Peter and John are arrested by the Temple security force. The next day, the two apostles are hauled before the Jewish Temple authorities and interrogated. These are the same men who, just a few months earlier, had condemned Jesus. Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, confesses the Jesus Christ is the stone which was rejected, but which is the chief corner stone. He further tells them, “And there is salvation in ano one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

b. I remind you of this event to set up Acts 4:13 for you

“When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13, NIV84)

1) never for a moment think that you need a theological degree, or even evangelism training to share the gospel

3. to be an effective witness today, all we really need to do is spend time with Jesus!

a. you cannot give what you do not have; and you will not have anything to share if you do not spend time with Jesus

1) you don't need a theological PhD to talk to others about spiritual matters, but you do need a living relationship with a living Savior

b. if you know the Lord and are walking with Him, then you, like these Apostles, have the preparation necessary to begin putting into practice sharing the good news

B. THE POWER OF THE MESSENGERS

"And He was giving them authority over the unclean spirits." (v. 7b)

1. these disciples did not go forth in their own power

a. they went forth in the power of God, given to them by Jesus Christ

b. He granted them power over the enemy of their souls

1) they were given authority over the powers of darkness, the evil spirits that were seeking to steal, kill and destroy the souls of the people to whom they were going

c. God never calls us without giving us the power to accomplish the task

2. just as these disciples were given power, so are we

a. when you came to Christ, His Spirit — the Holy Spirit — flooded into your life and gave you all the ability you need to share the gospel

C. THE PROVISION OF THE MESSENGERS

"And He instructed them that they should take nothing for their journey, except a mere staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belt; but to wear sandals; and He added, 'Do not put on two tunics.' And He said to them, 'Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave town. And any place that does not receive you or listen to you, as you go out from there, shake off the dust from the soles of your feet for a testimony against them.'" (vv. 8-11)

1. at this point of His ministry, Jesus was beginning to teach His disciples how to have faith

a. he wants them travel lite so-to-speak

b. only that which is absolutely necessary must be taken along on the trip

1) why?

2) because God will provide

(Luke 22:35) "And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing." KJV

c. it's a lesson which must not be neglected by any who would follow Jesus

2. like the disciples, we must come to understand that God is in charge of our lives

a. we must learn how to trust Him, not only for our spiritual needs, but also for our temporal needs as well

b. but we must especially trust in His provision when we are on mission for Him

II. THE MESSAGE

"And they went out and preached that men should repent." (v. 12)

1. we’ve talked about the Messengers of the King, now let’s turn our attention to the Message of the King

a. the message was a simple one: Repent

2. vs. 12 tells us that they preached a gospel of repentance

a. the word preach here is kerusso — to proclaim, and refers to the authoritative, public pronouncement of vital information by a herald

b. in village after village they preached the good news that sinners could be reconciled to God and enter into His kingdom

ILLUS. Unfortunately, in America today, you can visit church after church, from stately cathedrals to small congregations, and you’ll seldom hear a word preached about repentance. You can visit congregation after congregation for months on end, and never hear any mention of repentance. A vast number of churches have decided that repentance is too offensive a message. In fact, entire denominations have de-emphasized it. You can hear all about God’s love, his blessings, his precepts for coping with life, but not a word about godly sorrow for sin. You can hear messages on loving others and being a good, kind person. All of that is indeed scriptural. But you won’t hear a repentance message like the one Peter preached at Pentecost — a sermon led thousands to freedom in Christ.

c. the message of the gospel is not the gospel if it does not include a message of repentance

1) it’s a message much of the modern church has forgotten

3. our message must be the same message that Jesus, and the disciples preached

a. when Jesus first began to preach, His message was "Repent, for the Kingdom of God is at hand"

b. His disciples had heard Him preach this message over and over again

c. now, it was their turn

4. the disciples preached a message that men need to turn from their own sinful ways to the living God

a. they need to be willing to lay down their lifestyle and replace it with a new and better way

b. this was the message of the King

5. when Jesus told the people to repent because the Kingdom of God was at hand, He was saying something important and radical

a. He was about to inaugurate God’s New Covenant

1) he called them to turn to Him in faith and lay aside the legalism and the ritual of animal sacrifices which had only been a shadow of Christ’s ministry and what would be His atoning sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary

6. our message is the same: "Stop what you are doing. Lift up your eyes. Look to the Lord and be obedient to Him.”

a. stop trusting in your own personal goodness: Trust in the Lord

b. stop trusting in religious ritual and earthly sacraments: Trust in the Lord

A. THE MESSAGE OF REPENTANCE IS A MESSAGE OF RESTORATION

1. man is alienated from God by His sinful nature

a. the communion enjoyed between man and God in the Garden was destroyed by sin

b. the result is that sinners are alienated from God

2. but repentance brings restoration

a. that's the good news

1) the Good News is that we can now be made right with God

2) our relationship with God can be restored when we repent of our sins and believe in the work of Jesus Christ

b. that is what repentance does for us

1) repentance brings us to restoration

3. the message of the Gospel is that not only can we be saved, but that we can be different — that our lives can be transformed and our inner character completely changed

III. THE MERCY

"And they were casting out many demons and were anointing with oil many sick people and healing them." (v. 13)

1. finally, let's turn our attention to the Mercy of the King

a. verse 13 implies that the people who heard the message did indeed turn to the Lord

b. the message of repentance went forth and many responded to it

1) and when they responded to the message, God had mercy on them

2) that mercy is seen in the exercising of demons and the healing of the sick

2. God wants us to be a whole people

a. many times, when Jesus had healed someone, His response to them is, “Your faith has made you whole.”

ILLUS. The most well-known example is the found in John’s Gospel. Jesus is surveying the mass of humanity gathered in a series of porches around the Pool of Bethesda. They are waiting for the ‘troubling of the waters’ and hoping for a miracle. Tradition said that from time-to-time, an angle would stir the waters of the pool, and whoever was first into the water after that, would be healed of whatever ailed them. Jesus zeroed in on a paraplegic who had been brought there every day for 38 years. He approached the man and asked the question, “Do you want to be made whole?”

b. many of our modern translations do us a disservice when they translate the Greek word used here as ‘well’ as in ‘do you want to be made well’? instead of ‘Do you want to be made whole?’

c. wholeness implies more than merely being healed or getting well physically

1) many people will recover from an injury or illness and have no lasting or latent physical problems

2) but they may never recover psychologically or emotionally from the event that caused the injury or illness in the first place

d. what we see here is the mercy of God as He lays His hand on us to heal us, spirit, soul and body

3. the ministry of these disciples did not end simply with preaching the Gospel to them

a. as people turned to the Lord, they began ministering to them in their souls and in their bodies

b. the message is clear: God is interested in us as whole people

1) He not only wants to forgive our sins; but He wants to deal with our problems from both an emotional and a physical level

c. this says something important to us about our ministry to others

1) we must never, never neglect to give people the life-changing Gospel which will meet their eternal needs

2) but we must also never neglect to reach out to them with the healing power of God to meet their temporal needs as well

3) this is were our witness will stand out in the world

4. when we share the good news that Jesus can give new life, we must also understand and care enough about the emotional and physical problems of those we are sharing the Gospel with

a. we must communicate that the mercy of God is for all and reaches into all areas of human existence

1) when people were hungry, Jesus fed them; so should we

2) when people were suffering, Jesus ministered to their need; so should we

IV. APPLICATION

A. FAITHFUL MESSENGERS ARE OBEDIENT TO THE CALLING

“And he summoned the twelve and began to send them out in pairs,” (Mark 6:7a, NIV) (Mark 6:12–13, NIV84)

B. FAITHFUL MESSENGERS MANIFEST COMPASSION

“ ... and gave them authority over the unclean spirits,” (Mark 6:7b, NIV)

1. not only are they given authority over demons, but in Matthew’s parallel passage they were also give authority to heal the sick and raise the dead

“how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. 4 God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.” (Hebrews 2:3–4, NIV84)

a. again, we see here a compassion for the whole person, and not just the saving of a soul

2. Scripture describes false teachers as merciless, brutal, and compassionless — they are people who abuse people, take advantage of the poor, and seek to enrich themselves

a. rather, let our attitude be that of Paul toward the Thessalonians

“You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. 6 We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else. As apostles of Christ we could have been a burden to you, 7 but we were gentle among you, like a mother caring for her little children. 8 We loved you so much that we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well, because you had become so dear to us.” (1 Thessalonians 2:5–8, NIV84)

C. FAITHFUL MINISTERS LIVE DEPENDENTLY

“These were his instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9 Wear sandals but not an extra tunic.” (Mark 6:8–9, NIV84)

1. weather you are a vocational minister or a laymen, the principle that Jesus lays down is that we are dependent upon the Lord in our gospel witness

a. Jesus does not call his followers to take a vow of poverty, but he does call us to live in dependency on him

D. FAITHFUL MINISTERS EXERCISE DISCERNMENT

“And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them.”” (Mark 6:11, NIV84)

ILLUS. What the Jews understood as a symbolic protest against uncircumcised pagans, Jesus applied as a sign of judgment against those who rejected the gospel.

“Whatever town or village you enter, search for some worthy person there and stay at his house until you leave. 12 As you enter the home, give it your greeting. 13 If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town. 15 I tell you the truth, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.” (Matthew 10:11–15, NIV84)

ILLUS. All pastor, who are called to a new church, are familiar with what ministers call the “hit list.” It’s a list of all the sinners in town who have been faithfully witnessed to for 20 years, but who have never come to faith in Christ. But the new pastor is expected to faithfully go after them.

1. Jesus is blunt — those who have been exposed to the truth of salvation, repeatedly, and knowingly reject it. will receive the severest form of eternal judgment

a. Jesus teaches a hard lesson — there are some people we simply shouldn’t waste our evangelistic time on

We are messengers of the King. We bear the message of the King. And by our ministry, we extend the mercy of the King.

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