Mark (26)

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Introduction:
God is holy. His commands and laws are good. We are guilty of rebelling against God. According to the Scriptures, Jesus perfectly obeyed God and suffered death as the payment for our guilt. He was raised from the dead as the accepted sacrifice, victorious over sin and death. We must turn from sin and trust in Christ alone in order to be made right with God.
Transition: This gospel is at the very core of what we are going to discover in our study today. Turn with me in your copy of God’s word to Mark chapter 10 as we continue our series through Mark’s gospel.

The questionable question (1-2)

The motive to murder and self justify. (explain)
Should consider our motives for asking Jesus questions. There is a difference between asking God questions in order that we might live in holiness by His power and strength, and then asking God questions in order to find a loop hole to enable our sinful desires. We don't approach God’s word looking for a way to excuse our sin, rather we have His Word revealed to us in order that we might die to our sin and be alive to Christ.

The revealing answer (3-9)

1.Offer some brief observations from verses 3-5.
2. Law of creation. (explain)
3. Same truth that Holy Spirit inspired apostle Paul to record in Romans chapters 1 and 2 when he is making the defence that Jews and Gentiles are guilty before God. that without distinction all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. Gentiles, by the law of creation are without excuse just as much as the Jews are who have the written record of Gods law.
4. Point: Even though the effects of the fall have dealt a cursed blow to marriage, God’s ideal still stands. Jesus’ point is not to excuse the hardness of hearts, but rather reveal them in light of the character of God.
5. Examples… Homosexuality, Unity of trinity= no longer 2 but 1 flesh hince Divorce for any reason is an affront to the triune unity of God, practice before promise, Preparing for marriage or dating for divorce.

The clear explanation (10-12)

Jesus is offering a clear explanation in order to show the purpose of God’s law exposes sin. According to the law which the Pharisees seemed to care so much about , the sin of adultery was punishable by the death penalty. This is exactly why Jesus is explaining this so pointedly, He is showing the severity of sin.
The example that Jesus explains here is concerning divorce, but He confronts hard heartedness is many other areas of God’s law as well. See Mark 7:1-13 for example.
The point that we need to notice here is that Jesus is saying so much more than details about divorce. In the gospel of Mark alone Jesus is questioned from Pharisees and other Jewish leaders concerning who can forgive sins, eating with tax collectors and sinners, fasting, the Sabbath, authority over demons, rituals of washing hands, taxes, wives after the resurrection, the greatest commandment and a few others… And in all of these Jesus is unpacking the clear expectations of the gospel.
Point is this: Jesus could pick any topic of the law and explain the heart of it in order to expose our sin. We may read these couple of verses and think that Jesus is being a bit too harsh, or that He’s raising the bar too high. And that's just the problem. It reveals that we are seeking to justify ourselves, and meet the conditions required to enter the kingdom of heaven. And so the true intent of the law is raised high because we must see the Holiness of God in His law. That even though we may think we’ve done pretty good at one point, we have all failed miserably at some point. (maybe not marriage.. but gossip, jealousy, coveting, honoring parents, stealing, and etc.
We must not dumb down God’s holy expectations nor the just ramifications of breaking His laws and commands. That doesn't mean we walk in self righteousness attempting to keep the law in order to be right with God, but rather we have our hearts tenderized by the law of God and trust in the righteous work of Christ alone to save us.
If we happen to think Jesus’ explanation of divorce is too high we need only reflect on His cross. We need only remember that it was his obedience to God’s high standards and death in our place that paid for our guilt in breaking those high standards.
Closing: Jesus is using the truth of God’s law about divorce to expose hard heartedness. He is teaching here what he demonstrated when the woman who was caught in adultery was brought to Him in John chapter 8.
He is preparing His hearers and us for what He’s about to teach concerning entrance into the kingdom of Heaven. Plainly, Jesus is revealing our great need for a Savior. For Himself. If it were not for the mercy of God we would all suffer the due penalty of our sin. if it were not for His grace we would all receive the justice of hell for rebelling against the Holy Creator.
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