The first 26 verses here in this 8th chapter of Mark are really going to give us all the same basic idea. And so I plan to cover the first half of those 26 verses today and then, Lord willing, next week we'll look at the rest. Jesus has been ministering in Gentile country and we haven't seen anything of the disciples. Do you notice that? For the last couple weeks we've not seen them mentioned in Jesus' miracles and what he's doing. But here, Mark is going to bring them back into the picture. So let's stand, if you're able. Once again, out of respect for the reading of the Word of God, I'll be reading Mark chapter 8, verses 1 through 13. In those days, when there was again a large crowd and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples and said to them, I feel compassion for the people because they have remained with me now three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way. And some of them have come from a great distance. And his disciples answered him, where will anyone be able to find enough bread in this desolate place to satisfy these people? And he was asking them, how many loaves do you have? And they said, seven. And he directed the people to sit down on the ground. And taking the loaves, the seven loaves, he gave thanks and broke them and started giving them to his disciples to serve to them. And they served them to the people. They also had a few small fish. And after he had blessed them, he ordered these to be served as well. And they ate and were satisfied. And they picked up seven large baskets full of what was left over of the broken pieces. About 4,000 were there. And he sent them away. And immediately he entered into the boat with his disciples and came to the district of Dalmunutha. The Pharisees came out and began to argue with him, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. Sighing deeply in his spirit, he said, why does this generation seek for a sign? Truly, I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation. Leaving them, he again embarked and went away to the other side. That's the reading of God's inerrant, infallible word. You may be seated. Let's pray. Our Heavenly Father, You have truly not dealt with us according to our sins. You have not rewarded us according to our iniquities. You have told us and truly we have experienced it that as far as the heavens are above the earth so great is your mercy toward those that fear you. Lord truly you have tender compassion upon your people as a father pities his children. And you know our frame, you know that we're weak, you know how slow to believe, how slow to get the truth we are. And so Father, this morning as I approach you, as we approach your throne, I ask that you would help your people to see, help them to hear. Lord, help us. even though we are so slow to learn. Thank you, Father. I trust that you will do that. I pray for any that does not know Christ that may be here listening, Father, that you would speak right to their hearts and give them to understand your truth. Help me, O Lord, to communicate clearly. I need you. I can do nothing without you. In the name of Jesus, I ask. Amen. She was seven years old. She was deaf and she was blind. Her parents didn't know what to do with her. Nobody really knew what to do with little Helen. So her parents contacted the Perkins School for the Blind and called for a teacher to come alongside and work with their little girl. Ann Sullivan, a volunteer for the assignment, and she was 20 years old when she met for the first time Helen Keller. What we transpire over the course of the next few months and years still baffles the best of educators. It really is a mystery. But with timeless effort, tireless effort, and somehow managed to teach this child who was unable to see, unable to hear, And she taught her how to communicate with manual sign language, using her hands, and how to read braille, and how to interpret speech by putting her fingers to the lips of another person and feeling the vibrations. It is no wonder, then, that Mark Twain, the American author, called Ann Sullivan a miracle worker. He said she's a genuine miracle worker. And I think that if you were to interview a lot of teachers across our country, Across the world, I think they could tell you that some students need nothing less than a miracle worker. Some students need special help. Mark's Gospel tells us of one such teacher who also was a miracle worker. His name is Jesus of Nazareth. We've seen him in action, we've seen him working, teaching, doing the impossible, teaching the deaf to hear, the blind to see, the dumb to speak. But in our study this week, and really next as well, focuses on a problem that we all have. It's a problem of being slow to learn, slow to hear. And I'm not talking about lacking IQ. This is not a low intelligence problem. But what we see is a common theme of scripture. It is an insensitivity to the teachings of Jesus Christ. It's an insensitivity to the spirit of God. It's a slowness, a spiritual slowness, a spiritual density where we don't get what God is telling us. Have you ever felt like you were slow to learn? Have you ever felt like as a Christian, as one endeavoring to follow Jesus Christ, that you just weren't getting it? You just weren't going anywhere in your Christian life? That maybe your progress was slow going? Well, Jesus wants to radically transform all of us, even the slowest of us. Even those of us in this room, you say, I'm that student and I feel like Jesus is just gonna give up on. Jesus wants to bring you along and to graduate you with highest honors. He does that with the men in our story. And he wants to do it with you. He can do it with you too. So this morning, and really the thrust of these first 26 verses, I want us to appreciate. I want you to appreciate Jesus as the perfect teacher. Jesus is the perfect teacher who successfully brings along all of his students, all of his disciples. As he would tell the father of those that you've given to me, I have lost none. And Mark's text gives us four reasons here. Among many, why you should appreciate Jesus as the perfect teacher. Here's the first reason why you should appreciate Jesus as the perfect teacher. He repeats the lesson until you get it. He repeats the lesson until you get it. It's been said repetition is the mother of all learning. You've heard that before. It's really true. A good teacher will repeat the lesson until his students truly understand. Notice verse one, in those days when there was again a large crowd and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples. The phrase in those days is connecting this story we're going to read with the stories that have come before. It's the stories of Jesus ministering in a Gentile region. Jesus has been ministering in Decapolis, that's what we saw in our previous text. And so this little phrase suggests that Mark understood the event that we're going to look at as occurring in Gentile country, in the region of Decapolis, that's significant. Well, Mark is saying, in those days there was again. That's also a significant word here. There was again a large crowd and they had nothing to eat. And so again, Jesus is gonna call his disciples to him. What was the first time where Jesus did this? Mark chapter 6, Jesus calling to himself the 5,000 and feeding them. And maybe as I read verses 1 through 9, you thought this is just a little bit familiar. This sounds just a little bit similar to what we've already looked at where Jesus fed those 5,000 people in Mark 6. And so because of that, many scholars today will insist that Mark or his sources got the facts confused. They will claim, they will insist that this is actually a duplicate of the story that you read about in Mark 6. that this is a confusion. And I've met with people, I remember a skeptic telling me that this is among the most obvious and embarrassing of things in the Gospels. Like Mark didn't realize that they were duplicating this story. There's a couple ways they'll argue this. First of all, critics will say, well look at all the similarities. Look at all the similarities between this story and the one that you see before where Jesus feeds the 5,000. It's the same story, they claim. But ultimately, the point of similarity that they argue is in the disciples' response. This is their real objection. They say, how on earth could the disciples be so insensitive and absolutely dense that they could not see what Jesus intended to do here? And that's really going off of the response to Jesus in verse 4. One critic claims the stupid repetition of the disciples' question from verse 4 is psychologically impossible. They say there's no way they didn't get it. And so this must be a duplicate of the same event. Well, as convincing as that might sound to you, maybe you've been led to think that way before, I remember as a young person reading this story and actually having those thoughts myself, as convincing as that might seem to you, there are actually far better reasons for understanding this is an entirely separate and subsequent event. to what we've read about in Mark chapter 6. The feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000 are two separate distinct events. We see that first of all in all the similarities, in that all of the, despite all the similarities, there are so many differences. I don't even have time to flesh all those out to you, but they're very noteworthy and Mark is careful to point that out, that this is a very different situation. But there's also the fact that the whole point of this narrative we're going to look at, the whole reason that Mark is bringing the story to our attention, and he includes it in his brief report of all these things Jesus has done, is to make the point that Jesus is indeed repeating the lesson. He's repeating the lesson. It's not the same event. It's a repetition of Jesus' lesson to his disciples. But most critically, if you look down to verses 14 through 21, which we won't get to today, but Jesus will explicitly tell his disciples, this miracle was distinct. He's going to ask them, do you remember what happened when I fed the 5,000? How many loaves did you have? How many baskets did you take up of food afterwards? And then he's going to question him about this miracle. Jesus recognizes these miracles as two separate subsequent, or this is a subsequent event of the first. And so to deny this is really to deny the inerrancy of Mark's gospel and Matthew's gospel, who also gives you the same story. You can believe Matthew and Mark, or you can choose to believe critics writing two millennia later. But why would Jesus repeat the miracle? That's what we should ask. So why would Jesus repeat this to his disciples? What was the point in that? Well, it's his way of repeating the lesson. And there's two lessons here Jesus repeats. Here's the first. Jesus cares. He cares. We looked at that already, but Jesus repeats it here. In case you missed it for the first time, in case you forgot it, in case it's lost its wonder on you, Jesus wants you to know again, he cares. He wants you to know how he feels. He calls his disciples and says, verse 2, I feel compassion for the people because they have remained with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And while Jesus' compassion has been repeatedly evident, we've seen this time and time again in Mark's Gospel and the things Jesus is doing. Here is the only time actually in the Gospels where Jesus actually, from his own mouth, expresses he feels compassion. Wow. Why is that? Apparently, Jesus wants it to be clear. I feel compassion for the people. And this feeling of compassion is that Greek word, splagnitsamai, which describes an innermost gut feeling. It's like when you are sick to the stomach. This is a deep feeling that Jesus had in his innermost being. And Jesus' compassion for these people should impress you for at least two reasons. First, the people he has compassion for are Gentiles. They are Gentiles. Jesus wants his disciples to see I care for Jews and Gentiles. I have compassion upon the 5,000 gathered in Galilee. I have compassion upon the 4,000 gathered in Decapolis. It's a lesson his disciples would need to learn in order to faithfully carry the gospel to the ends of the earth. Jesus cares for all people. Well, there's a second reason we should be impressed with Jesus' compassion here, and that's these people were not in any mortal danger. Not literally. Here in the countryside of Decapolis, these people remained with Jesus for three days. That's a long time, but whatever supplies they had gathered are now long expired. They are understandably hungry. And so Jesus remarks, verse 3, If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way, and some of them have come from a great distance. You see the western side of the Sea of Galilee, known as the region of Galilee, was more densely populated. That's the Jewish region here of northern Palestine. But this eastern seaboard, the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, Decapolis, this predominantly Gentile region, was more sparsely populated. The cities were more spread out. And so Jesus understood he has a legitimate concern here. These people are starving and some of them have a long journey ahead of them across a wilderness. But you should think about this. The compassion Jesus has for these people's hunger. How does that really compare to the compassion we've seen of Jesus before? I mean, does it compare to somebody who his compassion upon a leper? This guy who has this terminal, terrible disease of leprosy, or what about the Syrophoenician woman we looked at just a while back? She comes to Jesus because her daughter is demon-possessed and she can't do anything about it. That's a kind of need that will move you, right? You know what's amazing to me, what impresses me about this text? It's moving to hear Jesus say, I feel compassion upon these people who've missed a meal. I feel compassion upon people who are hungry. Do you know that when Jesus sees a man, a woman, a child going without a meal, do you know that moves the heart of the Savior? Think about that. This isn't a mortal danger these people are in, but it moves the heart of our Lord. I was growing frustrated with God just this week over something in particular, and I expressed to the Lord, Lord, I believe you have to understand. I just believe you have to understand this. And my mind went to this text. It went to this very idea that Jesus was moved with compassion upon people who went without a meal. They were hungry. And you know what that did for me? It comforted me to know this. Jesus cares. Surely my need, surely what I'm stressed about is something the Lord understands and is moved with. And beloved, when you see and hear how Jesus feels about the weights you're carrying around in life, you'll take peace. You'll find encouragement to know Jesus cares. So Jesus wants you to remember the master cares, he's repeating the lesson for you. But despite all that Jesus has said and done to make this point clear, sometimes we just don't get it. Sometimes we just don't understand the way Jesus is feeling. And when it comes to how Jesus is feeling, this is one of those moments when his disciples missed the boat. Look at verse four. And his disciples answered him, where will anyone be able to find enough bread here in this desolate place to satisfy these people? Did the 12 not really know what Jesus could do? That's again the question. Did they not really know? Or did they possibly forget? Did they actually forget what Jesus had done not long ago or several months ago? Feeding these 5,000 people? Well, they didn't forget what had happened. If you skip down to verse 19, you'll see Jesus asks his disciples, the same people, do you not remember? When I broke the five lows for the 5,000, how many baskets full of broken pieces you picked up? And they said, 12. They knew, they didn't forget. They remembered when Jesus fed the 5,000. They recalled the exact number of leftovers. They hadn't forgotten the fact of what happened. They aren't suffering from some cognitive disorder. They weren't having a senior moment. What's going on here? They weren't seeing or feeling in this situation what Jesus was. They just weren't seeing things the way our Lord was. They just weren't feeling things the way Jesus was. And we'll look more at their problem here. But it's worth thinking about when needs arise, there's really only two ways that you can approach the situation. There's two ways that people approach the situation. And it's true not just of anybody, it's true in the church. We can look for an entrance into people's problem. We're looking for a way to enter in. How can I help? It's the idea that says, your problem's my problem. What can I do about it? Then there's the alternative. It's the opposite. It's looking for the exit sign. It's looking for the way out. It's the idea that says, not my problem. And that's really the impression the disciples leave us with. When Jesus draws attention to what is the legitimate need, the 12 take the exit door approach to ministry. Sure, they appeal to the location. It's a desolate place. Sure, they appeal to the size of the crowd, for which there could not be possibly enough bread to satisfy. But more than likely, and commentators agree, this is just their way of looking for the exit. They're looking for the way out because they don't care for these people. Remember, these are Gentiles gathered here. In Mark chapter 6, there were Jews gathered there. But the disciples had trouble feeling compassion for their own people. They weren't even concerned about them. They said, Jesus, turn them away. And so the resentment that they would feel toward this Gentile crowd would have only been natural. The Jews just couldn't stand the Gentiles. Maybe we can't appreciate this, but this is just something that was very real in the disciples' time. Remember the story of Jonah in the Old Testament, this little story of Jonah? God tells the prophet Jonah, I want you to go to that wicked city, Nineveh, this capital of the Assyrian Empire, and I want you to cry against it because their wickedness is great so that they will repent and I will have mercy on them. And you know what Jonah says? Not me. And he takes a ship headed the opposite way. That's how strong Jewish resentment was. They didn't want these people to repent. They didn't want God to have mercy on the Gentiles. And even after Jesus himself would commission his disciples to go into all the world and he says, preach the gospel to every living creature. Do you know that these men would still struggle? with the call to go to the Gentiles. Peter in particular. They would struggle with this. Well, thankfully, Jesus repeats the lesson to show them, to show us he cares. Yes, even for these people. Jesus is repeating this lesson because he wants his disciples to get it. Jesus cares. But there's a second lesson Jesus is repeating for his disciples and it's this. Lesson number two, he satisfies. Jesus satisfies. His disciples answered in verse four, where will anyone be able to find enough bread here in this desolate place to satisfy these people? They weren't feeling Jesus' compassion for these people, but they also weren't thinking of his power, his ability to satisfy. Yes, Jesus satisfies. But you know, it's easy to forget that. It's easy to forget that Jesus satisfies because it's easy to forget all that Jesus has done. Now by forgetting here, I want to be as clear as I can in the time we have that I'm not talking about being unable to recall what Jesus has done in your life. This isn't the inability to recall, but it is neglecting to think about those realities. The Twelve didn't have a memory lapse, we've already said, of Jesus feeding the 5,000 people, but apparently they failed to think about it. They didn't really meditate on this. They didn't really consider what this meant. We see this as early as Mark 6, 52. Only hours after feeding the 5,000 Jesus disciples, we are told, had not gained any insight. The word is understanding, a same word that appears twice here in our text. They failed to understand this incident and were told because their hearts were hardened. Not a cognitive problem, it's a heart problem. In other words, they could tell you better than anyone, Jesus can satisfy. They had eyewitness testimony to that fact. But suddenly when Jesus throws them in a real life situation, a real case study, sort of changes a few things, but it's the same situation. Jesus is no longer the Jesus who satisfies. He's just a story to be told, not a savior to be entreated. It's the kind of forgetfulness Israel suffers so often in the Old Testament. You know, Israel never forgot that Yahweh delivered them from out of Egypt. They knew that. That's what defined them ethnically, as a people. They didn't forget that Yahweh had part of the Red Sea, was part of their story. They didn't forget how he fed them in the wilderness. Not in the sense that they forgot it happened, but it was just a story in their past. That's all it was to them. They didn't lose memory of Yahweh, but they lost their awe and appreciation for Him because they neglected to think about what He had done. And Christian, if you're honest, you will be able to identify with this very kind of amnesia. This kind of forgetfulness. You've seen Jesus do so much in your life. You've tasted of the grace and goodness of the Lord. You've seen all the works of the Lord in the past. If you're a believer, you've seen how he's redeemed you, how he saved you. But sometimes all those blessings that Jesus has done in your past, they stay right there. That's what they are. They are simply a story to be told. And Jesus is a character out of a storybook, not a savior to be entreated in a present time of need. So why is this? Well, it's easy to forget. You don't have to do anything to forget. Forgetfulness will come naturally to you. It comes naturally to all of us. Maybe this afternoon a good thing to do would be to just spend some time and reflect on what has Jesus done for me? What does it mean for me? How is it really affecting my life right now? That's worth doing. The twelve answered Jesus. They said, where will anyone be able to find enough bread here in this desolate place? They're concerned about their location. They're concerned about the situation. Do you know your circumstances don't change, Jesus? It was a different day. It was a different month. It was a different region. It was a different crowd. Different scenery, but the same Jesus. Well, somehow the disciples treat this situation as though it's something different. And if that's true from Mark 6 to 8, that Jesus is the same. You can change the scenery, Mark 6 to 8, but Jesus is the same. Is that not also true today? Is Jesus really the same from year to year, from day to day? Is he the same in New York as he is in Queens? Or in Galilee as he is in Decapolis? The scriptures tell us Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever, Hebrews 13, 8. So Jesus, because of this, is going to give his disciples a taste of deja vu. Look at verse 5. And he was asking them, how many loaves do you have? And they said, seven. He's going to repeat the lesson. OK, you didn't get it the first time. Watch this. Verse six. And they served them to the people. They also had a few small fish. And after he blessed them, he ordered these to be served as well. The reason Jesus is having them sit down, he's blessing the loaves the way he is, he's breaking them, he's distributing everything the way he is, is he's doing everything as similarly as possible to what he's done before with the feeding of the 5,000. The teacher wants it to be clear. I'm repeating the lesson for you. Verse eight says they ate. That is all these people and were satisfied. Now Mark doesn't mention exactly how this miracle impacted the 4,000. I'm sure they were amazed. I'm sure they were astonished. They were astonished enough at Jesus' teaching to have remained there three days listening to him, okay? You better believe they were astonished at this miracle. But Mark doesn't draw attention to that because he's not so focused on the crowd's need in this story. He's really wanting you to notice the disciples' need. The disciples had a need of their own, being slow to learn. So the question this 12 asked, what was it from verse 4? Who can satisfy these people? What's Jesus' answer? What's the answer to that question that the teacher will demonstrate to them? Well, it's the same answer. It's the same lesson that Jesus has already shown them in the feeding of the 5,000. I am the bread of life. I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger. And he who believes in me will never thirst. That was the lesson. I satisfy. Why do you think it's any different? That was Jesus' way of saying, I satisfy. I always satisfy. Jesus cares. Jesus satisfies. Now I'm sure the 12 could have told you that far better than I could. They could have told you that better than anybody. But that was the problem. It was just what they knew. It was just what they were able to articulate or spit out, like the correct answer on an exam. But Jesus calls you as his disciple. Not to just memorize facts about him. Look, your training in the school of Jesus Christ and being his disciple isn't about passing some theological exam. Theology is important. But it's not just facts, right? Jesus says, come to me. Learn of me. Take my yoke on you and learn of me. We are to learn Christ. We are to learn of Jesus. The compassion he has, his ability to satisfy, and the question is, have you learned Christ? Are you learning of Jesus Christ? You could tell someone Jesus satisfies, do you believe it for yourself? Verse 8 continues, and they picked up seven large baskets full of what was left over of the broken pieces. About 4,000 were there, and he sent them away. Jesus prepares the meal, and when Jesus prepares the meal, there's always leftovers. No one goes hungry on Jesus' watch. The fact that there were these seven large baskets, and these were hampers, the Greek word that's used is the same word used later in the book of Acts described the basket Paul is concealed in when they're bringing him down, letting him down over the wall of Damascus. These were large hampers, seven hampers full of bread. You know what that means? Nobody went hungry. There was plenty to go around. Jesus satisfied the hunger of these people. That was a lesson for these disciples. I also should mention this, that Jesus gathers, he has all of these leftovers to be collected. Did you know Jesus recycled? Yeah, Jesus was resourceful. Jesus didn't want these leftovers to go to waste. I'm actually not joking. I think God cares about you being a good steward of everything he's given to you. Don't be wasteful. Jesus wasn't. Well, thankfully, Jesus repeats the lesson. He satisfies, and it's even in the desolate places of life. Maybe you feel you're there. If you're not, you're going to feel it. God's going to bring you through that valley of the shadow of death, through that wilderness. And when he does, you need to remember who really satisfies. The first lesson that we've seen Our first reason, rather, why you should appreciate Jesus as the perfect teacher is that he repeats the lesson until you get it. That's a great teacher. Jesus, so patient, so gracious. I want you to get this. Even those of us so slow to learn. But a second reason from our text why you should appreciate Jesus as the perfect teacher is that he reveals everything you need to know. Jesus will reveal to you everything you need to know. That's a good teacher. I'm sure many here, perhaps all of us, can think of a teacher in our educational past that maybe wasn't so helpful. Maybe they talked over your head. Maybe you felt like they weren't so interested in helping you, or maybe you felt they gave you an exam that you hadn't been properly prepared for. Really? I didn't know this was gonna be on exam. You know, like it's the teacher's fault. And because all teachers are imperfect, they really may fail to do a good job preparing us. But Jesus is the perfect teacher. He knows all the answers there is to know, and he knows you. He knows his students. So that Jesus will give you everything you need to know to achieve what he's calling you to do in life. Do you believe that? This is a deeper and more profound claim that we have time to really adequately explore. But verse 10 says, immediately he entered into the boat with his disciples and they came into the district of Dalmanutha. I want you to see there's a scene change here. And while Jesus is going to interact directly with the Pharisees, That's gonna be his discussion here, a debate with them. Jesus' real concern, even from this interaction, doesn't have to do with the Pharisees so much as with his disciples. That's still the focus of this text in the entire context we're looking at. And so Jesus has come to Dalmanutha. This is some obscure village. It's likely some place on the west coast of the Sea of Galilee, means Jesus sailed all the way across the sea to the western shore, opposite the region of Decapolis. And verse 11 says the Pharisees came out and began to argue with him. Well, imagine that. They began to argue once again, seeking from him a sign from heaven to test him. Jesus doesn't owe anyone a sign. He doesn't owe anyone a sign from heaven, but some people will insist they need one. And that's the Pharisees here. They demand Jesus give them a sign. Notice how they approach Christ. We're told they come out, they came out really like as against him as in military array is the idea. And they began to argue with him. The word there is they were contending their point with persistence. Maybe you've debated with somebody that just didn't know when they were beat, or they just wouldn't stop. They wouldn't let it go. That's these guys here. They won't drop the issue. They won't let Jesus go. They insist to continue pushing their point. And what they're insisting is that Jesus give them a sign from heaven. Now the word sign there is the Greek word simeon. It describes a sign of a miraculous nature. They want a miraculous proof right in the sky. Split the heavens, Jesus. and their demand for miraculous proof from heaven is their way of saying, first of all, everything that you've done so far, Jesus, thank you, not sufficient for us to believe. You want us to believe? You're gonna have to give more proof. Give us more evidence and we will believe. They're also saying here, it's obvious to us, that all the miracles you perform to this point are really not from heaven. We want a miracle from heaven. We want something really impressive, Jesus. Well, where did the Pharisees think that Jesus' miracles did come from? Well, don't you remember Mark chapter 3? Their official verdict was, your miracles come from the power of Satan. You are inspired, you are empowered by Beelzebub, the prince of demons. That's the only way they could account for the supernatural power of the man Jesus Christ. It doesn't come from God, it must come from the devil. That was their thinking. But Jesus, give us a real authentic sign from heaven. So they're putting Jesus to the test, Mark says. And the word test there does not mean an objective test to try to discern the truth, to discover the merit of something. The idea here, the word here, is to tempt. It's to catch one. It's stumbling. To discredit one. And that's what the Pharisees will attempt to do. It will tempt Jesus all the way to the cross. If through the Son of God, what? Come down from the cross. Then we'll believe. We need more proof. It's like that atheist I heard about who in a public speaking engagement said, all right, God, if you're up there, I dare you to strike me dead. Gave God a few minutes. Everybody kind of held their breath. Finally, the time was up. He said, well, folks, it looks like there's no God up there after all. Case closed. He didn't get his sign from heaven, so he didn't think he needed to believe. What a foolish way to approach God. What a foolish way to think we can get God to do our bidding. You want to meet a doctor? You're going to have to make an appointment in his office. On his schedule, you want to meet the president? Well, you're going to have to meet him his time, his way, in his place. You want to meet the Lord God Almighty? Well, you will. But you had better meet him on his terms. And the fact Jesus is the Son of God, that's how Marcus introduced his gospel. Jesus Christ is the Son of God means we cannot demand anything from him. We have no right to more evidence, more proof. we must embrace what Jesus shows us. Jesus doesn't owe you or anyone heavenly proofs, but Jesus does give sufficient proof for anyone honestly and earnestly seeking to know the truth. Notice how Jesus responds to the Pharisees. Verse 12, sighing deeply in his spirit, he said, why does this generation seek for a sign? It's because of all that Jesus has done for this people that we're told he deeply sighs. Does that sound familiar? Have we seen this language recently in Mark's gospel? Yeah, we have. In the previous text, where Jesus is confronted with this deaf man's broken condition, and he groans within himself. But did you know this? The word, though, related to that word in Mark 7, 34, is actually stronger. It's a word that describes a stronger groaning within, a deeper sighing. Actually, the idea is that of one who, humanly speaking, comes to the end of his limits. One who is exasperated. That's Jesus here. Maybe you find that odd. Can you imagine Jesus coming to the end of his limits? Humanly speaking, Jesus had limits. He had human limits. He needed to sleep. He needed to eat. You know, Jesus, humanly speaking, comes to the end of his limits here. It's because of all Jesus has done to show these people that he then asks, as if to himself, Why does this generation ask for a sign? With what right or on what grounds are you asking for a sign, Jesus is saying? It's a good question. Why would a generation that had witnessed so many miracles, so many marvelous things, demand more? Why would they do that? Jesus implies the evidence is sufficient. You know, there's no end of stories or instances I could give you. If you know Jesus Christ, I hope this is a reality to you and you can relate to this. But when you honestly examine the evidence for Christianity, the evidence that God has revealed in Scripture and in nature and such, there's just such an incredibly compelling case. I think of the individual our teens got to hear even last week at the youth conference, Jay Warner Wallace, a cold case homicide detective who was an atheist but said, you know what I'm gonna apply? The same criterion with which I investigated cold case, I'm gonna apply that to the claims about Jesus Christ. I'm gonna see if they hold up. And you know what he found? They do. There's actually abundantly more evidence in the case for Christ The evidence for Christianity is without parallel. But the reason so many people don't find the evidence convincing, or will never even bother with looking into it, is what? It's not an intellectual problem. It's not an IQ problem. It's a heart problem. It's their sin. Jesus himself would say in John 3, 19, men love darkness rather than light. That's the nature of the beast. People love sin. They love sin and they want to stand it. They don't want to believe. So Jesus is really asking the disciples here, or the Pharisees, since you've made up your mind already, what you believe about me, since you've already determined you don't want to fall down and worship me as the son of God, why would I give you another sign? What else would it take? Well, at the end of verse 12, Jesus adds, truly I say to you, no sign will be given to this generation. Not being unfair or kind, it's just his way of saying, I demand that you trust what I've already revealed. That's what you get, because that's what's sufficient. And if you look at Matthew's parallel account, you notice Jesus does mention the sign of the prophet Jonah. as an exception, alluding to his resurrection, and that would be the sign of all signs. But Jesus assures the Pharisees, you're not going to get anything else, because what I've given you is enough. And with that, he leaves them. Verse 13, leaving them, he again embarked and went his own way to the other side. All of this, Jesus groaning, his exasperation at their unbelief, his question and all. What is that showing you and I? He's saying, I've given you everything you need. You don't need anything else. Trust me on account of what I've already shown you. And maybe you're wondering, yeah, well, Pastor, what does this account with the Pharisees, Jesus' interaction with them have to do with Jesus' disciples? I thought we were talking about Jesus as a perfect teacher toward his disciples. Well, look at Mark 15. 815, and he was giving orders to them saying, watch out, beware of the eleven of the Pharisees. Jesus knew the problem these guys have is the problem you struggle with. The moment you become a Christian, you're still going to struggle with unbelief. You're still going to struggle with doubts. And you know what you still need to realize about the good teacher? He's still giving you what's enough. Jesus has revealed everything you need to know to do his will in life. That's important. Christian, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. Beware of trying to condition your trust upon God by Him doing more for your life. By God showing you more, by God giving you signs. There are Christians all around this world, people claim to be Christians, and they say, God, I'll believe or I'll do this if you do A, B, and C for me. That's not right. We don't bargain with a teacher. Why? Because Jesus has given you everything you need to know. Do you believe that? You had better. That's part of him bringing you along, trusting his word. The fault of unbelief lies with us, not with God. So don't tempt God in asking for more. Be content with what he's given you. Examine the evidences for faith that God has given you in his holy word. We'll have to continue our study of verses 14 through 26 next week. There's plenty more here, and I trust that will help bring this more together. But you should appreciate Jesus as the perfect teacher. We've seen, first of all, because he graciously, so patiently repeats the lesson. He did that for his disciples, he'll do that for you. You say, I'm the slow one in the class, I don't get it. Jesus is going to give you the lesson. He's gonna keep repeating things for you in life until you get it. So let's get it. Let's take time reflecting. Let's not forget what Christ has done and who he is. But we've also seen that he so graciously reveals everything you need to know. If you're a disciple of Jesus, he gives you everything you need to know to pass the exam. You don't pass, you're having problems. Not his fault. The problem is in our slowness to believe. So we'll examine a couple more reasons to appreciate Jesus. as our perfect teacher next Lord's Day. But let me also just say this. If you have any questions, if you're here and you say, you know, Pastor, I'm not, I'm not a Christian or I don't, I'm not a follower of Jesus Christ, or I have doubts about the gospel. Would you please approach me? Would you just give me the opportunity to talk with you about that? I'd love to hear any questions you have, because I believe with all my heart, Jesus has revealed enough. He has revealed everything you need to know. And I'd like to show you that. in his words.