The Amazed Jesus

And turn to Luke chapter 7. Luke chapter 7. We'll be reading two passages this morning.! A short passage from Luke, and then another passage from the book of Mark.

! So Luke chapter 7. We'll be reading verses 1 through 10. When Jesus had finished saying all of this in the hearing of the people, he entered Capernaum.

There a centurion's servant, whom his master valued highly, was sick and about to die. The centurion heard of Jesus and sent some elders of the Jews to him, asking him to come and heal his servant.

When they came to Jesus, they pleaded earnestly with him, this man deserves to have you do this, because he loves our nation and has built our synagogue. So Jesus went with them.

He was not far from the house when the centurion sent friends to say to him, Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof.

That is why I did not even consider myself worthy to come to you. But say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority with soldiers under me.

I tell this one, go, and he goes. And that one, come, and he comes. I say to my servant, do this, and he does it. When Jesus heard this, he was amazed at him.

And turning to the crowd following him, he said, I tell you, I have not found such great faith even in Israel. Then the men who had been sent returned to the house and found the servant well.

Then please turn over to Mark chapter 6. Mark chapter 6, we will be reading the first six verses. 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 him, that he even does miracles?

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 offense at him.

Jesus said to them, Only in his 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. Wow. Awesome.

Amazing. There's any number of events and things that could elicit that kind of a response from us in life, aren't there? I think those words are used way too much.

A slam dunk. A truck with really big wheels. Or a real exotic hairdo. Awesome, dude.

Amazing, we say. Really? Really? Really? Or does that just show how shallow we are? There are things that are really awesome.

There are things that are really amazing. And when we see Jesus Christ, the perfect man, amazed, we want to know, what is it?

What is it that he would say? This is a marvel. This is a wonder. Perhaps there are many things that amazed our Lord, but you know, there are only two separate events recorded in the Gospels where we read that our Lord Jesus was amazed.

We've read both of those accounts. The same Greek word is used in both places to describe Jesus' reaction. It's a word that means amazed, astonished, to marvel, to wonder at.

There's even an element of surprise in the unexpected in this emotion, isn't there? You remember when you saw the Grand Canyon or Niagara Falls for the very first time?

You marveled. You stood amazed, even surprised. There was no way that you could be prepared for that event. Even the pictures and the descriptions and other people's telling you of it could not prepare you for the experience itself.

You were amazed at the sight. And so the emotion of amazement is another proof of our Lord's true humanity.

He has a human nature as human as ours. With all of its emotions, but without sin. He also has a divine nature.

And as God, he can be surprised by nothing. Because he knows all things. He sees through everything. There's nothing for him to say, wow, let me pond.

I can't understand everything about this. This is a marvel to think about. But as man, the Lord Jesus learned like we learned.

By experience. Finding out things. And he was astonished at times. We've just read of two. So what was it that struck amazement into the perfect soul of our Lord?

Well, both times it was something he observed in people. He saw something in people. And in finding the answer, we will learn some important life lessons ourselves.

So we're fixing our eyes this morning upon the amazed Jesus. The amazed Jesus. Now we turn first to Luke 7.

And the passage that was read first. We're introduced here to a centurion in the city of Capernaum. We don't know his name. He's a Gentile.

Which simply means he's not a Jew. He's in the Roman army. And he's a rather important man in the army. He's got a hundred soldiers under him. And we also learn he had a servant who was sick and about to die.

Now there are many positive traits about this centurion. That just meet us right away on the face of this passage. We see that he genuinely cared for his dying servant. We didn't view him just as a piece of property.

Oh, no matter. I'll get another one. There's a genuine concern for him. We see his love for the Jewish people. And that he built their local synagogue there in Capernaum.

By his donations. Of money. And we see he's got a humble view of himself. And he's got a high view of Jesus. And it's all quite attractive.

Well, he had heard about Jesus' miracles. And the things that he was doing. So when his servant was sick to the point of dying. He sent for Jesus to come and heal him.

But he didn't consider himself worthy to actually go and make that request personally from Jesus. Or even to be in his presence. So he sent some elders of the Jews to ask the favor for him.

Thinking, he's a Jew. A Jewish rabbi. Perhaps these Jewish elders will have more leverage with him than if I went a Gentile. Well, those Jewish elders had a high view of this centurion, didn't they?

They told Jesus, he deserves to have you do this. Well, now they didn't have a clue who Jesus was, did they? Nobody deserves to have Jesus do anything for them. But they thought highly of this man.

He deserves to have you do it. Because of the way he's helped our people. Their fondness for the centurion is seen in that they earnestly pleaded for Jesus to do this for him.

Well, it wasn't because the man deserved to have it done that Jesus went with them. But Jesus did go with them, didn't he? And they had almost arrived at his house when the centurion sent some friends this time to deliver a message to Jesus.

Lord, don't trouble yourself, for I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. Now, the elders of the Jews said, he deserves to have you do this.

The centurion says, I don't deserve to have you even come under my roof. I didn't even consider myself worthy to come to you. To stand in your presence. Do you see the difference?

He views himself humbly. Others viewed himself, him highly. This humble way of viewing oneself is not the usual way with men, is it? By nature, we're proud and we think we're worthy.

We think we deserve better. And others have to correct us and bring us down a notch and humble us. But it's just the opposite with this man. Everyone's saying great things about him.

But he has a humbler view of himself than others have of him. And so his love for his servant, his love for the Jewish people and his humility, these are all positive virtues.

But the most impressive thing about this man is his faith in Jesus. Notice how he expresses it. He says to Jesus, you don't you don't need to come to my house.

Don't don't trouble yourself. All you need to do is say the word and my servant will be healed. Now this is the incredible thing about his faith.

It perceives the authority and power of Jesus. This man understands how the universe works behind the scenes.

He explains it in terms of his own military chain of command. I'm a man under authority and there are those under authority under me, under my authority. I have these soldiers and servants under my authority.

And that's why when I say go, they go. And when I say come, they come. And when I say do this, they do that. In other words, when the commander speaks with authority, things happen just with a word, just with a word.

Even so, he believes that Jesus has unique authority, not just over 100 men, but over all things. And that when Jesus speaks, everything jumps to attention and obeys.

Amazing faith. If Jesus says go, then sickness must go. And if he says good health come, then good health must come to a servant.

Such is the authority of the Lord Jesus that all he has to do is speak and it will happen. So he has a voice. That sick and diseased selves in my servant's body will hear and obey.

Just like my men do when I issue an order. And he believes that Jesus can do this miracle from a distance. You don't need to come to my house.

You don't need to lay your hands on it. You don't even need to see him. You can even from a distance speak. And my servant will be healed. And when Jesus heard this, his jaw dropped.

And we say that when someone's amazed, don't we? I saw a picture of Peyton Manning in a practice game making a run to get a first down. And I had a picture of the coaches and even the referee and their jaws were dropping.

That Peyton Manning is running for a first down. Now, Jesus was amazed at what he heard about this man.

And he turned to the crowd and explained his amazement. I tell you, I have not found such great faith in all Israel.

I've never seen this before. It's what he's saying. It's amazing. So here it is. Here's the thing that makes the perfect man, Jesus Christ, say, wow, that's amazing.

That is astonishing. Here's one of the true wonders of the world worth turning aside to see. The faith of this man.

Now, there's a double reason for Jesus' amazement at his faith. First is the greatness of his faith. I've not seen such great faith.

Now, all faith is amazing. You know what faith is? Faith is being sure of what we hope for and being certain of what we do not see.

Isn't that amazing? You are sure of things you have never seen. You're absolutely certain about things that you have never seen.

That's faith. That's what faith does. It's that certainty, that confidence that this is true. You've never seen the Lord Jesus.

You are more sure of his reality than of this pulpit. You're sure. You're confident. That's faith. That's what faith does. Isn't not all faith amazing?

And you believe it so much that you rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Though you do not see him, yet you believe. You believe. It's certain. He's amazed at the greatness of his faith.

He understands the. This man understands the sheer authority of Jesus word. So. So he has faith to penetrate to the very nerve center of the universe.

And how it all functions. Just as a brain sends a signal to wiggle my right pointing finger and it wiggles. A signal goes out and it obeys.

So this man sees that Jesus is the center. The nerve center of the universe. And he sends out a message. And creation obeys him.

They still. Understand and recognize the voice of our creator. Now this is precisely what we see throughout the scriptures in the beginning.

God, the son spoke and creation sprang into being. Nothing suddenly became something. By faith, we understand that the universe was formed at God's command.

God said, let there be light. The word went out. And there was light. By the word of the Lord were the heavens made.

Their starry host by the breath of his mouth. Now that's the way it was in the beginning. And all created things still have an ear tuned to his voice. And it's this very thing that the gospel writers are concerned.

That we get. That we understand. And that's why it keeps these gospel accounts keep showing us these miracles of Jesus.

What do we find in the gospels from eyewitnesses who saw these things happen? Well, Jesus speaks. And demons obey him. Come out of her.

And they come out. An authority over the demons. He speaks in all diseases and disorders. Obey him. Rise up and walk.

And the cripple is walking. He speaks. And the dead come to life. Still the boy at Nain. Get up. And he gets up. To Lazarus.

Four days dead. Come out. He comes out. His authority extends over demons. Diseases. Death. Itself. Indeed one day.

He will usher a command. And at his voice. All the dead. In their graves will come out. Those who have done good will rise to live. And those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.

At his voice. Death. Response. Jesus speaks. And fish swim into the nets of his disciples. Jesus speaks. And the wind and the waves obey him. They're all in an uproar.

The winds and the waves. And he just says. Hush. Be quiet. And they obey. And it's all quiet. That's what the gospels are ever wanting us to see.

Indeed the whole universe and everything in it. Responds to his authoritative word. Lord. That's why we're alive today. We live by every word that proceeds out of his mouth.

He has decreed that we be alive today. That we have voice and breath to come and to sing his praise. And lo and behold this Gentile.

Paul. Gets it. Even before the gospels were written. He understands. How the universe operates. He understands who Jesus is.

Now some of the highest Christology found anywhere in the New Testament is found in Hebrews 1. Verses 2 and 3. And it says this. Speaking of the Son of God. Whom he.

God the Father. Ordained heir of all things. And through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory. And the exact representation of his being.

Upholding all things. By his powerful word. His word. So why does the Adam. That tiny little thing. Hold together.

Because Jesus is upholding it by his word. Why is the universe not just scattering. Out of control.

Why is it in perfect order. Because Jesus is upholding it by his word. He upholds all things. By his powerful word. And the centurion sees something of that.

And confesses it. And believes it. He sees that his servant's diseased body. Will respond to Christ. Powerful word.

That's no small faith. Is it? And so it draws the astonished praise. Of our Lord Jesus. But there's another truly amazing thing. About this faith.

Not only. The size of it. It's greatness. But that this great faith. Should be found in a Gentile. A non-Jew. Jesus says.

I tell you. And that's the phrase he uses. Before he introduces something. That's hard to believe. I tell you. I have not found such great faith. Even in Israel. I believe this is the really surprising thing.

About his faith. If ever you would expect to find great faith on the earth. You'd expect it to be found in an Israelite. Right? Why? Because they had all the huge advantages.

Over all the other peoples of the earth. You read it in Romans chapter 9. They were the one nation that God took to be his own. And entered into a close covenant relationship with.

And God taught them about his ways. He revealed his glory to them. There he is in the mountain. In the cloud. In the tabernacle. In the temple. They saw a visible representation of his glory.

He gave them the law. The holy scriptures. And so the Israelites knew things. That nobody else knew. Because God had revealed it to them.

Through the prophets. That were sent to them. So the scriptures told them. How the universe was founded. At God's command. It told them about God's works and ways.

There were promises that told them. Of the coming Messiah. And the way. That he would come and bring salvation. To his people. And saving them from sin. So since faith comes by hearing.

The word of God. Surely the greatest faith on earth. Will belong to the man. Who has the most knowledge. Of the word of God. Maybe one of their scribes. Maybe one of their teachers of the law.

No. Here he is. He's a Gentile. A dog. In the eyes. Of the Jews. Without.

Without. These advantages. That the Jews had. And yet. His simple faith in Jesus. Outstrips any. In Israel. By the way. That includes. The twelve. Disciples of Jesus.

Even. Ouch. They heard that. No one. In all Israel. Had seen so clearly. And trusted. Him. So simply.

So fully. His faith. Penetrated. To the unseen. Glory of Jesus. And Jesus. Is downright. Amazed. Finding something.

Where he least. Expected. To find it. Let's draw out. Four lessons. On faith. From this text. First of all. Faith. Pleases Christ.

And is rewarded. By him. You know. The Bible. Says. Without faith. It's impossible. To please God. But faith. Is a pleasing. Thing. To God.

And it. Pleases God. Because it. Honors him. It's a God-centered. Thing. Faith. Looks away. From self. And it. Looks to him. And that. Pleases him. And Jesus. Is so. Pleased.

With this. Centurion. Man's. Faith. That he. Rewards. It. With a double. Blessing. First of all. He praises. The man's. Amazing. Faith. To the whole. Crowd. And by the way.

To the extended. Crowd. Which would include. You and me. Who are. This morning. Reading about. That faith. Jesus. Praises him. Those who honor me. I will honor. Jesus.

Shows his. Delight. In his. Faith. And secondly. He rewards. The man's. Faith. By healing. His servant. We find this. In Matthew's. Account. That having spoken. To the crowd.

Jesus. Then said. To the centurion. Go. It will be done. Just as you believed. It would. And his servant. Was healed. At that very hour. Let it be to you. As.

As you have believed. According to your faith. Be it unto you. And so. The first lesson. Is faith. Faith pleases Christ. And is. Rewarded. By him. Your faith.

In your trials. In your times. Of need. Pleases him. And he rewards it. And praises it. The second lesson.

Is that faith. Is the supernatural. Gift. Of God. It's not something. We're born with. It's not natural. To sinful man. It takes a new birth.

To give us new life. And to give us faith. To understand. The things that are unseen. Again. Faith is being sure. Of what we don't see. It's. And it takes a new heart.

To be given. Faith. The natural man. That's just man. As he comes into this world. Naturally. The natural man. Without the spirit. He does not accept. The things that come from. The spirit of God.

For their foolishness. To him. Neither. Can he understand them. Because. The things of God. Are discerned. Spiritually. And he's dead.

Spiritually. The natural man. Is dead. So you can talk. To your blue in the face. About the unseen glory. Of Jesus. He sees no beauty. In him. That he should desire him. But when God.

The spirit. Makes a person. New. And opens. Their blinded eyes. So that now. They see by faith. What they never saw. Well. The glory of God.

In the face of Christ. I never saw such glory. I never saw such beauty. And wonder. In. The Lord Jesus. Before. And we offer ourselves.

Up to him. In the sweet surrender. Of faith. If you have this faith. In Jesus Christ. You must thank God. For it.

Do you see in Jesus. What many Israelites. Failed to see in Jesus. Do you see. What most of the world. Today.

Fails to see. Is blind to. That Jesus. Is the Lord. Of all. That everything. Answers. To his orders.

If so. You have God. To thank for it. Because faith. Is the gift. Of God. Who made you. To differ. From anyone else. And what do you have. That you have not received.

And if you've received it. Why do you boast. As though you had not. Thank God. For the gift of faith. You know what. The gift of faith does. It receives. The gift. Of eternal life.

Isn't that. Something. It's all. It's all gift. Isn't it. Eternal life. Not wages. But the gift of God. And how do I receive it. By another gift. Faith.

The very faith. To receive the gift. Of God. Is a gift. It's all gift. It's all grace. And so. If you have faith. Thank God. For it. It's a supernatural.

Gift. From him. And the third lesson. Is that faith. Is the cause. Of true humility. Faith. Is the cause. Of true. Humility.

Now we know. Now we understand. Why this centurion. Was so humble. He had great humility. Because he had great faith. Humility.

Is the fruit of faith. A faith. That sees Jesus. For who he is. And when you've seen. Jesus. For who he is. You're humbled.

At who you are. It's not something. You put on. It's not something. You act. Listen. If you have to act humble. That only shows. How high you think. Of yourself.

That against your. Your. Your true feelings. You have to put on. A different behavior. I really feel. I'm up here. But I'm going to act. Humble. You see. The whole acting job.

Just shows how proud. We are. No. If. Humility is real. It's the reflex. Response. Of faith. It's. It's a response. To what we see.

In Christ. In God. True humility. Is the reflex. Action. Of faith. So you've been to the doctor.

And had your reflexes checked. And you're sitting on the edge of the bench. And your. Your legs are just hanging there. He takes that little rubber. Mallet. And he gives a firm wrap. Beneath your kneecap.

And. You don't have to try to kick. Do you? No. You just relax. And it automatically. Jumps. Your leg jumps. And hopefully. Before a few. Seconds have passed.

If your reflexes are good. Reflex. It's just automatic. Humility. Is the reflex. To what faith sees. Faith sees.

This Jesus. He's the Lord of all. He just speaks. And my servant's sickness. Will leave. And that from a distance. I don't understand. I can't see a cord.

Reaching from Jesus. To my servant. But there's some connection here. He's got authority. He's got power. That this happens. And who am I? I don't deserve.

To come into your presence. When I see who you are. I don't deserve. To have you come under my roof. And this centurion.

He's not alone in this. Is he? Isn't that what happened to Isaiah? When he saw the Lord. High and lifted up. There's Jesus. Seated on his throne. And Isaiah sees him in vision. And the glory of God.

Fills the whole temple. Holy. Holy. Holy. Angels. Are just. Crying out to him. That's the hammer on the knee.

And the reflexes. Down he goes. Woe is me. I'm ruined. I'm undone. For I. I'm a man of unclean lips.

And I. Dwell among a people of unclean lips. And my eyes have seen the king. His reflex. Not what happened to Peter.

He's in the boat. With Jesus. And. He'd fished all night. And he caught nothing. Any of you ever been shut out. All night. Fishing. That's Peter.

Cleaning the nets. Then heading home for a good rest. And. Jesus says. I need your boat for a pulpit. And he stands in it. And he preaches to the people. And when the sermon's over. He says. Okay Peter. Now. Get in.

And go out into the deep. And let down the nets. For a catch. And all the fishermen. And Peter said. Lord you don't understand. They're not biting. And I'm tired.

Yet. Because you say so. I will let down the nets. And when he did. There was such a large school of fish.

That swam into his nets. That he couldn't pull it into his boat. Without the help of another boat. And they filled both boats. And both boats started sinking. With the mother load. And what's Peter's response?

He's just seen something. He's had a fresh insight. Into. Who it is. That's in the boat with him.

He's the creator. He doesn't start counting up. The dollars he could make. If Jesus would just. Fish with him more often.

He's down. On his face. Go away from me. I'm an unclean man. I'm a sinner. And I've just seen who you are. You're not a sinner.

You're the creator. You know what's. What's going on in the depths of the sea. You command the fish. They obey you. You said let it down for a catch. And it happened. A catch happened. At your word.

It's a reflex. And that's the way it was with the center. He had a big view of Jesus. And that's why he was a humble man. And if your problem is humility. If your problem is pride.

The answer is not to try to act humble. The answer is to fix your eyes on Jesus. See your God for who he is. Just deal with the facts.

Don't pretend anything. Just deal with reality. Who he is. Who you are. Down we go. Down we go. You know that will wither up all complaining.

Right at the root. Won't it? I deserve better than this. No. If you know who he is. And who you are. Your hardest.

Your most difficult. Your most painful trial. Is nothing compared to the hell. That you deserve every moment of all eternity. And you say. Anything outside of hell is mercy.

And so you're the most thankful person. On the planet. Humble. Humble. Because of what faith sees. Faith. Produces.

Humility. And lastly. Faith draws us to Christ. With our needs. And our burdens. And our cares. I say faith draws us to Christ. What did the centurion's faith do for him?

What did it lead him to do? Well. With his concerns for his dying servant. Well. He brought them to Jesus. Why Jesus? Why not the doctor? Because he knew something about Jesus.

By faith. You know. All Jesus has to do is speak. And. My servant will be healed. And that drew him. To take his request to Jesus. You know.

Our situation is even better. Children of God. We do not send for help. Through some messenger. Or friends. Rather.

We take our request. Directly. To Jesus. Because he is our friend. And he counts us as his friend. And so we. We have his heart. And yes.

We're just as unworthy. As this man. To be in his presence. And we're just as unworthy. Of having him do the least thing for us. And yet. Through faith in Christ. And what he has accomplished. On the cross.

In dying for our sins. We're welcomed. At the throne of grace. And so the things that concern us. The things that. Keep us up at night. Worrying.

The things that. That we care about. That are valuable to us. That are being threatened. We bring them to Jesus. That's what faith will do. It will draw you.

To prayer. Where we lay out our requests. Before the Lord. Believers. This is the one we pray to. The one we're seeing this morning.

Who but speaks. And the servant. Is healed. Well then. Go to him. All creation.

Is at his back. And call. Go to him. And keep going to him. Casting all your cares on him. Because he does care for you.

And he is able to do something. About whatever it is. In all creation. That you are concerned about. Just speak the word. And my servant. Will be healed.

Now you don't have servants. But you might have people. Who are valuable to you. And precious to you. Who are sick. Go tell Jesus. You might have some.

Who are sin sick. Who are struck with a disease. Of waywardness. You stand them up. As an infant.

And you let them go. Through life. And every time. They go wayward. Away from God. They've got the disease.

Of waywardness. We all like sheep. But going astray. That's in their DNA. That's in their nature. As a fallen sinner. To go astray. And we gave them that nature.

And they're constantly. You've got somebody. Who can do something. Just speak the word. And my son. My daughter. My mother. My father.

My brother. My sister. Will be healed. Of their waywardness. That's what Jesus. The Lord says. In. Hosea 14. For.

I will heal. Their waywardness. And love them freely. Wayward feet. Why? A wayward heart. We have one. Who just speaks. And. The waywardness.

Is healed. Make use. Of the Lord Jesus. Where we have faith. Faith. Will draw us. To come. And to. To ask the Lord. Faith in God.

Can move. Mighty mountains. Thou art coming. To a king. Large petitions. With thee bring. For his grace. And power. Are such. That none. Can ever ask.

Too much. Let's not forget. Jesus pleasure. And finding. Stretching our need. Out upon him. He's delighted. With. Faith. And that's one of the things. That amazed him.

Now we've only got time. To mention. Very briefly. The other. Account. In Mark. Where Jesus comes. To his hometown. Nazareth. And he's been away.

He's been out preaching. And all kinds of crowds. Coming. And miracles. And now he's back home. He's teaching. In the Sabbath. On the Sabbath. In the synagogue. Mark 6.

And at first. Many who heard him. Were amazed at him. Amazing. Look at this guy. But it wasn't long. Before they talked themselves. Out of amazement. And into resentment. Now what do.

What do hometowns usually do. For their favorite sons. Well they usually honor them. Don't they? They usually are happy about them. And pleased that. That they come from that town. Otis Bowen.

Is. Is Bremen's favorite son. We might say. What do we do? What does the town do. For a favorite son? Well we. We name buildings after him. We name streets after him.

We hold parades for him. But not Jesus. He comes to his hometown. What does he find?

Well only in his hometown. And among his relatives. And in his own house. Is a prophet without honor. They won't honor him. Why? Because a prophet. Claims direct revelation from God.

His word isn't just a little friendly advice. No it's. Thus saith the Lord. Right. And who are you. To be commanding us. And though Jesus wisdom.

And miraculous works. Did more than suggest. That indeed. The supernatural. Is present in Jesus. Yet in their minds. This cannot be. Because after all. He's just one of us. Us Nazarenes.

This little backwater town. We know where he's from. He's. He's. He's the carpenter. There on the edge of the town. That took. Took his dad's business. Over. You know Mary.

We know his mom. And his brothers. There they are. James. Joseph. Judas. Simon. His sister. They're all here too. He's just another one of the family. That family. He's no one special.

And they took offense at him. The. Familiarity with him. Bread contempt. He can't be anyone special. We. We've seen him. We know who he is. Who does he think he is.

Teaching us anyway. No one special. Think how that differs from the. The centurion's view of Jesus.

There's nobody like him. A unique authority. That with a word. Creation response. He's just an ordinary Nazarene.

Nothing special about him. And it was all due to their unbelief. They would not believe. And it was because of their unbelief.

That verse five goes on to say. That he could not do any miracles there. Except to lay his hands on. A few sick people. And heal them. Now Mark doesn't mean by this.

That there was any lack of ability. In Jesus. As if he tried to heal. But he couldn't. No. We have just seen in Luke. All he has to do is speak a word. And it's done. It doesn't matter who stands in the way of him.

What obstacles resist him. It's over. So Mark's not saying. You know. Here he ran into. A real opponent. And he tried to heal. But he couldn't. No.

That's not what Mark is saying. Mark is saying that. He couldn't. Because he wouldn't. It was not in line with his. His rule. Of operation.

His purpose. That we find him over and over saying. According to your faith. Be it unto you. As you believe. So it will be done to you. And Jesus is not about to waste his miracles.

On a grossly stubborn. Resistant. Unbelieving. People. And so he would not. He could not. Operating on the system.

His predetermined plan. He could not do miracles there. Because of their unbelief. Unbelief. J.C. Ryle comments. Unbelief has a power to rob men. Of the highest blessings.

Think of it. There were. Sick people. Diseased people. Not just a few. He healed a few. We're told. There were all kinds of needs. But they would not be healed.

They would watch Jesus move on. To the other towns. Still sick. Still dying. Still diseased. Still with their disorders. Others. Why? Because they would not believe on him.

And so they robbed themselves. Their unbelief robbed them. Of the highest blessings. And is it not a fearful thought. To realize that Jesus Christ. By his spirit.

Is present today. Now I know you can't see him. But faith. Is sure. Of what we do not see. And he says. As two or three are gathered. In his name. There he is.

In the midst of them. Jesus is present. And he's present. And willing. And able to forgive sins. The very thing that will damn men for eternity.

He's ready to wipe them off. The slate. To take them away. But men's unbelief. Will rob themselves.

Of the highest blessing. Of sins forgiven. J.C. Ryle says. It is so suicidal. And unreasonable a sin.

That even the son of God. Regards it with surprise. Can you believe it? There are some people here. Who unless God stops them this morning.

Will leave. With their sins. Still hanging over their head. When Jesus was here. To forgive. As damning as it is.

Few things are more common in this world. Than unbelief. It's what keeps multitudes out of heaven. And the closing statement of verse 6 says. And he was amazed.

At their lack of faith. Their unbelief. The lack of faith. In a place where it should have most been found.

It was there that he had lived a perfect life. For 30 years. They had seen him. In the temple. Or in the synagogue. Every week. On the market street. Playing with the other children.

Playing in their homes. Them being in his home. Then coming to the carpenter shop. Doing business with him. The little town of Nazareth. They had.

They rubbed shoulders with him. For 30 years. They heard him preach. They saw his miracles. The advantages they had. And yet for all that they rejected him.

They persisted in unbelief. He's not worthy of our lives. Of our obedience. Of our trust. And isn't that the story of Christ's visit? They came to his own.

And his own received him not. And already the religious leaders by now in Mark. Have already agreed. That they want Jesus dead. That's the reception.

He received. From those. Who should have. Been the ones to have the greatest faith in him. Amazing. Jesus is amazed. At the lack of faith.

He met with. In his hometown. I wonder. About. Some of you who have grown up. With all the advantages. Of the gospel.

You grew up in homes. Sunday school classes. Church. And. And Jesus Christ.

Was set before you. Thousands of times. Not exaggerating. Thousands of times. And you've heard mom and dad. Pray to this Jesus.

And. And thank him. For who he is. And. And you've seen something of the power. Of this Jesus. To transform lives. In this church. To take people.

And turn them. Around. To. To renovate their whole lives. From the inside out. You. You've. You've. You've seen that. You've. Received the gospel.

And. Still. Resist. The son of God. And will not. Believe. You know. There's children. There's old people. In this world.

Who've lived their whole lives. And they've never once. Heard the name of Jesus. There comes a point. When Jesus says. It's on to the next town. You see that.

In the next. Section here. That follows Mark six. It's okay. Let's go out. To the other cities. And if God. Would leave you. And take the gospel.

To the other side of the world. To one of those. Who've never heard. You would not have a leg. To stand on. In the day of judgment. Amazing.

Hardness. Of hearts. What's keeping you. From believing. What's keeping you. From believing. In the. Sight.

Within the sound. Of the word of God. That explains. What is unseen. What lies. Are you believing. What sins. Are you clinging to. What pride. And stubbornness.

That refuses. To bow to Jesus. Don't let the Savior. Pass by. This morning. He's here. He's willing. To save. He's ready. To forgive.

Look to him. In faith. Lord Jesus. Speak the word. And my sins. Will be forgiven. Lord Jesus.

I have no other hope. But have. For heaven. But you. I hear. And now. Cast myself. Into your arms. Lock. Stock. And barrel. All I am. Save me. Jesus. Take him.

This morning. Friend. You will. You will find him. To be. The best friend. In time. In the day of death. The day of judgment. And for all eternity. Faith.

Looks. To this Savior. He always lives. To save. All who come to God. Through him. Let's pray. Oh Lord.

We did not ask. To live. Where we do. We live in a Nazareth. In the sense of. Of advantages. And blessings.

Of the gospel. And we. We didn't choose. To live here. But how blessed. We are. And we thank you. For the. The sound of the gospel. In our ears. Some of us. From infancy.

And how we thank you. For the gift of faith. And opening our. Our blind eyes. And changing our stubborn. Sinful hearts. That refuse to believe. And so we worship you.

And we. We confess. That salvation. Is your work. And we. We. Thank you. For showing us. Things that we cannot see. In your word.

And convincing us. That it's true. And we're convinced. That there are. Sinners. Who are being robbed. By their own unbelief. And pray. Lord remove that mountain. Of unbelief.

Even this morning. And cause us then. To take you at your word. And to. To believe. This is. The one. That we pray to.

This one with. Supreme authority. And power. So. Draw us. To that throne of grace. Often. And bring us. With thankfulness. And send us. Into a world.

To make this message. Known. To people. Still. Unbelieving. Bring faith. For your own. Glory. And your own delight. We pray in Jesus name.

Amen.