Lord God, you caused the Bible to be written for our learning. Help us to hear your voice in your word and so to read Mark and inwardly digest its truth that through patience and the encouragement of scripture we might embrace Jesus and experience the hope of eternal life. Open our eyes that we may see wonderful things in your law and we ask this in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. So Mark chapter five, verse 21. When Jesus had again crossed over by boat to the other side of the lake, a large crowd gathered round him while he was by the lake. Then one of the synagogue rulers named Jairus came to him. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet and pleaded earnestly with him, my little daughter is dying, please come and put your hands on her so that she will be healed and live. So Jesus went with him. A large crowd followed and pressed around him and a woman who was there who had been subject to bleeding for 12 years. She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all that she had but instead of getting better she got 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 round in the crowd and asked, who touched my clothes? You see the people crowding against you, the disciples answered, and yet you can ask who touched me? But Jesus kept on 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 story. She said to her, daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering. While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. Your daughter is dead, they said. Why bother the teacher anymore? Ignoring what they said, Jesus told the synagogue ruler, don't be afraid, just believe. He did not let anyone follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. When they came to the home of the synagogue ruler, Jesus saw a commotion with people crying and wailing loudly. He went in and said to them, why all this commotion and wailing? The child is not dead, but asleep. But they laughed at him. After he had put them all out, he took the child's father and mother and his disciples who were with him and went in where the child was. He took her by the hand and said to her, Talitha koom, which means little girl, I say to you, get up. Immediately the girl stood up and walked around. She was 12 years old. At this they were completely astonished. He gave strict orders not to let anyone know about this and told them to give her something to eat. Jesus left there and went to his hometown accompanied by his disciples. When the Sabbath came he began to teach in the synagogue and many who heard him were amazed. Where did this man get these things? They asked. What's this wisdom that has been given to him? And he even does miracles. But isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son? And the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us? And they took offence at him. Jesus said to them, only in his town, hometown, among his relatives and in his own house is a prophet without honor. He could not do any miracles there except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their lack of faith or their unbelief. Amen. Now if you think about it, if you compare Mark 6, 1 to 6 that we are going to look at this morning with what has come before it. in Mark and we only read part of the section that's come before it that runs from chapter 4 verse 35 to the end of chapter 5. If you compare Mark 6 to what's come before it, Mark 6 if you think about it really is a bit of an anti-climax. The previous section, Mark 4.35 to 5.43, it's full of Jesus' authority as Jesus displays his lordship over creation and evil and disease and death. But Mark 6, 1-6 records an ugly incident in which the people of Nazareth, Jesus' hometown, challenge and resist his authority. Creation, evil, disease, death, they bow to Jesus' authority. But in Nazareth, they won't. They challenge it, they resist it. Also, in the previous section, they contain miracles. Jesus calms the mother of all storms. He drives out a huge number of demons from a man whose life was totally dominated by evil. He instantly heals a woman whose life had been ruined by internal bleeding. and he raises Jairus' 12-year-old daughter from the dead. These are spectacular displays of Jesus' power. But what sort of miracles do we come across in chapter 6, verses 1 to 6? Not many. Look at verse 5. He couldn't do any miracles there except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. So if Mark 4.35 to 5.43 is like a firecracker full of fizz and va-va-voom and containing lots of the wow factor, well Mark 6.1 to 6 is like a damp squib. It's full of nothing. Not much. Now, why does Mark include this anti-climactic passage in his account of Jesus' life? Doesn't Mark 6, 1-6 with the people of Nazareth resisting Jesus' authority put a huge dent into the main argument of Mark's Gospel that Jesus is the Saviour King? Well, not really. Because as we'll see, this incident is actually taking Mark's argument to a new level. It's turning up the volume as we listen to what he has to say about who Jesus is. And let me explain that by highlighting three lessons that this passage teaches. Here's the first one. faith in Jesus is essential. Faith in Jesus is essential. Now in the previous section Mark has been marshalling evidence to back up his assertion that Jesus is God's Saviour King. He shows that Jesus has authority in with no one or nothing or nowhere not under his rule. That's too many negatives in that sentence. No one, nothing or nowhere is not under his rule. As Abraham Kuyper, an early 19th or 20th century Dutch theologian, memorably put it, there's not an inch of the entire universe about which Jesus does not say, mine. And in Mark 4 and 5, Mark is also showing us that being under Jesus' kingly rule brings staggering benefits. Let me remind you of them. The disciples were wonderfully rescued from the violent storm that threatened their lives. The demon-possessed man was dramatically transformed from being a demented subhuman loner who was a danger to himself and everyone else into a calm and well-adjusted human being. The woman whose life had been blighted for 12 years by her hemorrhaging was not only healed of her increasingly debilitating disease but also experienced peace with God. And Jairus, who was distraught because of this serious illness and subsequent death of his 12-year-old girl, not only had his only daughter raised to life and restored to him, but he experienced a new relationship with Jesus. And Mark is saying in these stories that no one, no one who is under Jesus' rule is a loser. They're only big time winners. But then in chapter 6 verses 1 to 6 we come across the people of Nazareth who apart from one or two exceptions did not experience any of the blessings of Jesus Lordship. Now, does Mark give us any clues as to why the disciples, the demon-possessed man, the bleeding woman, and the bereaved father experienced the blessings of Jesus' rule while the people of Nazareth didn't? And the answer is he does, and it has to do with this matter of faith in Jesus. Why was the woman healed? because of her faith. If you turn back to chapter 5 verse 35 Jesus says to her daughter your faith has healed you. Her faith in Jesus healed her. Why was Jairus's daughter given back her life? Because Jairus had faith in Jesus. Look at verse 36, when Jairus heard the tragic news of his daughter's death, Jesus said to him, don't be afraid, keep on believing. And you only keep on believing if you've initially believed. Why did the people of Nazareth not experience any blessing from Jesus? Because they had no faith in him. Look at the start of verse 6 of chapter 6. He was amazed at their lack of faith. Faith in Jesus is the crucial factor in determining whether or not people experience Jesus' kingly blessings or whether they miss out on them. The woman had faith, Jairus had faith. in Jesus and they experienced his blessing. The people of Nazareth didn't and so they didn't experience Jesus' blessing. And this is why Mark is taking his argument about Jesus' kingship to a new level. He's introducing a new element into the equation. He's already stressed that Jesus is God's promised Saviour King. He's already underlined the breathtaking blessings that Jesus gives. But now, for the first time in an upfront way, Mark spells out that faith in Jesus is essential if people are to personally experience the blessings of Jesus' rule. It is those who have faith in Jesus like the woman in Jairus who are blessed but those who have no faith in Jesus like the people of Nazareth who miss out. And Mark is taking his argument about Jesus to a new level by clearly highlighting this connection between benefiting from Jesus' kingly rule and having faith in him. And that's how God has arranged reality in his world, that there's this inseparable link between personally experiencing Jesus' blessings and faith in him. And this is the reason for the statement in verse 5 of Mark chapter 6, that Jesus could not do any miracles there. Now that statement appears to say that the people of Nazareth were able to stymie Jesus. You know Jesus wanted to do miracles there but they stopped him from doing that. He couldn't do any miracles there. But that's actually not what Mark is saying. Let me explain. I'm up in Glasgow and I'm trying to find a parking space in some of those streets off Great Western Road. I'm trying to find a parking space. but there are double yellow lines on both sides of the street in which I would like to park. Later, when I am talking to one of my friends, I say to them, I could not park where I would have liked. I was not able to park in such and such a street. Now, it's not that I was unable to park on that street, because I passed my driving test many years ago and I can just about parallel park now, thanks to electronic devices. But I can parallel park. It's not that I wasn't able to park on the street, because I know how to parallel park. It was not that I couldn't park on the street, because there were piles of spaces, a whole street full of spaces to park. I couldn't park and was unable to park on that street because of the principle enshrined in law and enforced by clamping and hefty fines that motorists do not park on double yellow lines. And when Mark says that Jesus could not do any miracles, He's not saying that Jesus couldn't do any miracles because he had the power to do so, but he's presupposing this link that benefiting from Jesus' rule and having faith in him are tied together. That's how things are. And the people of Nazareth didn't have any faith in Jesus, so he couldn't do any miracles. And if there is this link between benefiting from Jesus, King Leroux, and faith in him, then it's essential that we have faith in him. You see, we badly need a king. Daily we sin in a staggering number of ways, and these sins are deeply offensive to the God who made us. Sin rules in our lives as a cruel tyrant and left to ourselves, hell not heaven is our ultimate destination. Banished forever from the glory of God, the God we have offended by our sinful rebellion. And we need a king, we need a king to come to take away our sin and to secure our freedom from a cruel master and to bring us into heaven. And Mark is saying that Jesus is that saviour king that we need. And by his death and resurrection, he has dealt radically and effectively with all our problems. But if we are to experience his sin-removing, freedom-giving and heaven-securing salvation, it's essential that we have faith in him because of this inseparable connection between benefiting from Jesus' kingly rule and faith in him. The first lesson that Mark is trying to teach us in this incident he records in chapter 6. Now I have a second lesson and you will be glad to know that it is shorter than the first one but it is similar. Only faith in Jesus is essential. Only faith in Jesus is essential. Now the NIV translates the start of Mark 6 verse 6, I think in a very poor way and it leaves it open to misunderstanding. The NIV says he was amazed at their lack of faith. And that phrase lack of faith gives the impression to some people that the reason why Jesus was unable to do many miracles in Nazareth was because the level of the people of Nazareth's faith was not quite good enough. They had faith, but it wasn't up to the right level. they lack the required standard of faith for Jesus to be able to perform miracles. And perhaps the picture that this phrase paints is of all the needy people in Nazareth queuing up to see Jesus and as each person came to the head of the queue and it was their turn to see Jesus, you could see Jesus looking them up and down and assessing the level of that person's faith. And if it didn't make the grade, if it didn't reach a certain level, Jesus said, on your bike. Can't help you. Won't help you. That's the kind of way lots of people think. They'll say to us as Christian people, If you only had a certain level of faith, if only your faith was stronger and it reached a certain level, then all these things would happen to you and God would do this for you. You have faith in Jesus, but I'm afraid it's not strong enough. And that's a very common way today in many Christian circles. It's this kind of idea. You have faith but you lack faith. You lack the certain level of faith. Now, that is the polar opposite of what Jesus is actually doing here and Mark is actually saying here. Nothing could be further from the truth. The reality was that the people of Nazareth were not queuing up to see Jesus. It's not that they had some faith, but not enough faith. It's they had no faith at all. Instead of translating what Mark wrote and the way it did, the NIV should have translated it. He was amazed at their unbelief. Literally what Mark says, he was amazed at their no faith. And this was the problem with the people of Nazareth. It was not that they had not reached a certain level of faith. It was that they had no faith in Jesus at all. You see in order for Jesus to bless you, you don't have to reach a certain level of faith. All you have to do is to have faith. Do you see what I mean? Do you see what I'm saying? You see this from the previous incidents. The woman who had internal bleeding didn't have a very strong faith. In fact, her faith was actually verging on superstition. You know, if I just touch his clothes, that's almost superstition. It wasn't a very strong faith. But she had faith in Jesus. She had faith in Jesus. It might have been weak. But she had faith in Jesus. And that's all that mattered. Jairus didn't have a strong faith. Jesus had to test it in order to make it stronger. But he did have faith in Jesus. And that's all that counted. Now as Christian people we should be aiming to have a strong faith in Jesus. But we need to understand that it's not weak faith that shuts the door to us experiencing Jesus' blessing. It's no faith. And it's not strong faith that enables us to benefit from Jesus' blessing. It's simply faith. We can't boast and say, you know, Jesus has blessed me so I must have a strong faith. Or we shouldn't look at other people as we do and say, you know, God is really blessing her, it must be because she's got a strong faith. We do that all the time don't we? It's not necessary for us to have a strong, developed, mature faith in order to be saved, in order to experience God's blessing. All we need is faith. It's only faith that's essential. And that's what Mark is trying to teach us in this incident. And the third lesson is simply this. Don't let anything stop you from having faith in Jesus. Don't let anything stop you from having faith in Jesus. Now initially the response of the people of Nazareth to Jesus seems to have been approving. End of verse 2 and verse 3. Many who heard him were amazed. Where did this man get these things they asked. What's this wisdom that's been given to him that even does miracles? They'd heard about Jesus, they'd listened to him and then they began to realise where all their approval was taking them. The Old Testament in passages such as Isaiah 53 35 verses 4 to 6 that we read earlier and Isaiah 61 verses 1 and 2. They spoke about how God himself would come to teach and help his people. How God himself would come and open the eyes of the blind and help the lame to walk and they'd heard that Jesus had done this. That God himself would come to teach his people and they'd heard Jesus teaching. They knew, knew that. And the people of Nazareth began to see that by the things he said and did, Jesus was claiming to be God. coming to save. And then they said to themselves, but we know better. They said, we know who he really is. Who does Jesus think he is claiming to be God? Verse three, isn't this the carpenter? Isn't this Mary's son and the brother of James and Joseph and Judas and Simon? Aren't his sisters here with us? He's not God. As he seems to be claiming, we know who he is. And they reject Jesus' claim. And they took offence at him because of it. And the people of Nazareth were adopting classic evasion tactics. Jesus' claim to be God's saviour king was staring them straight in the face. The big issue was staring them straight in the face. But they started to focus on lesser issues to try and sidestep Jesus' claim. And they said, how could Jesus be the Saviour King? We know that he's really just a village joiner. How could Jesus be God's son? They said, we know that he's Mary's son. And when they said that they said it with a snigger. Because in Jesus' time people were never referred to as their mother's son but always, even if he was dead, as their father's son. And so by calling Jesus Mary's son, the people of Nazareth were insinuating that Jesus was illegitimate. And their focus on lesser issues led the people of Nazareth to miss out on something greater, faith in Jesus as God's saviour king, who would enable them to access all the blessings of his rule. And aren't there people today in Campbelltown who are just like the people of Nazareth? They are our neighbours, our friends, our colleagues and even members of our family. They refuse to have faith in Jesus and one of the reasons they do and they give is that they know or they have known in the past someone who claimed to be a Christian but lived anything but a Christian life. Now, I am not condoning hypocrisy for one second, nor am I trying to play down the hurt and the difficulties to others the lifestyles of such people cause. However, what we need to grasp is that using the lifestyles of such people as an excuse for not becoming a Christian is just abating the real issue. It's focusing on something small to miss out on the big issue. Christianity rises and falls on the question of who Jesus is. and not on the behaviour of Christians. Again that is not an excuse for us to live a sloppy life or to be hypocrites but Christianity rises and falls on who Jesus is. not on the lifestyle of Christians. If Jesus really is God's Saviour King, and all the Bible data seems to be pointing in that direction, then regardless of their experience or objections, people must have faith in him. People today claim to be following the scientific method, don't they? Richard Dawkins has just brought out a new book in which he claims we have to follow the scientific methods which is evidence. But a vast swathe of people who aren't Christians don't. They are untrue to their principles. The evidence is all there that Jesus is God's Son. But they reject Jesus not on the basis of evidence but on the basis of their own experience. I knew someone who claimed to be a Christian and she was. Do you see what the people of Nazareth are doing and the people of Campbelltown and other places are doing today? They're allowing something lesser to stop them having faith in Jesus and we must not allow anything to stop us from having faith in Jesus and so experiencing all the blessings of his salvation. From the 31st of October 2005 until the 23rd of December 2016 I'm not going to ask for a show of hands but Channel 4 broadcast the show Deal or No Deal. I'm not going to have a show of hands, did you ever watch Deal or No Deal? We probably all had a snip at it and if you did watch it and if you didn't let me tell you that at the end of each show Noel Edmonds asked the question Deal or No Deal? So I want to finish off by playing my version of deal or no deal. It's called faith or no faith. Maybe I should do this all the way around. Faith or no faith. Now, think carefully before I put the question to you. To have faith in Jesus will lead to you personally experiencing all the blessings of his kingly rule. To have no faith will slam the door shut on those blessings. So are you ready for the question? Jesus is offering forgiveness instead of guilt. He's offering peace with God instead of hostility. He's offering freedom to serve God instead of sin's destructive control. He's offering a right relationship with God instead of exclusion from his presence. He's offering heaven instead of hell. So what's it gonna be? Faith? or no faith. And I know what some of you are in danger of doing. You're thinking to yourself, well this doesn't really apply to me because I've already put my trust in Jesus and I did it many years ago. We mustn't assume that faith in Jesus is only the way in which people become Christians and that when people are converted they move on to something more advanced. That's a false assumption. Let me remind you that the unanimous testimony of the Bible is that faith in Jesus is not something that you have at the start of your Christian life. It's something that you have to have every single day of your Christian life. The life I now live in the body, right now as a Christian, says Paul in Galatians 2.20, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. We need to grasp afresh because we can so easily forget that faith in Jesus is not only the entry point of the Christian life, It's also the exit point of the Christian life and everything in between. We don't start off by having faith in Jesus and then keeping going by our own efforts. It's faith from beginning to end. And the only time as a Christian you will not need to have faith is when you get to heaven. Because then you'll see Jesus and faith will give way to sight. But throughout your whole life you will need to have faith in Jesus. So the question is for you too, as a Christian, is it faith or no faith? Let's pray. Gracious God, with thankful hearts, we acknowledge that faith in Jesus, which alone saves us, does not come from ourselves, but is your gift to us. By your spirit, through your word, you have given us grace to believe in Jesus, and as a result, experience your salvation. Gracious God, with humble hearts we acknowledge that our faith in Jesus is often weak and not what it should be. By your Spirit, through your Word, increase our faith. Supply what is lacking in it so that we might be strong in faith. Help us to live each day of our lives by faith in Jesus, your Son, who loved us and gave himself for us. Grant us a faith in Jesus which overcomes the world, which purifies our heart, and which endures to the end and doesn't fail in spite of the difficulties, opposition and temptations we face. so that we might one day receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of your Son and our Savior, even Jesus Christ, in whose name we pray, amen.