Jesus Reveals our Deeper Need

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Praising God 

Psalm 147:1 says 

Praise the Lord! How good is it to sing praises to our God, how pleasant and fitting to praise him! 

Our musicians will lead us in our first song of praise 

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Bible Reading  

As we turn to this weeks Bible reading, let’s pray together: 

Heavenly Father, give us faith to receive your word, understanding to know what it means, and the will to put it into practice, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. 

Our Bible reading this week is Mark 2:1-12:

Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralysed Man

2A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. ² They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. ³ Some men came, bringing to him a paralysed man, carried by four of them. ⁴ Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. ⁵ When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralysed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

⁶ Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, ⁷ “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

⁸ Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? ⁹ Which is easier: to say to this paralysed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? ¹⁰ But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, ¹¹ “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” ¹² He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!”

Jesus Calls Levi and Eats With Sinners

¹³ Once again Jesus went out beside the lake. A large crowd came to him, and he began to teach them. ¹⁴ As he walked along, he saw Levi son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” Jesus told him, and Levi got up and followed him.

¹⁵ While Jesus was having dinner at Levi’s house, many tax collectors and sinners were eating with him and his disciples, for there were many who followed him. ¹⁶ When the teachers of the law who were Pharisees saw him eating with the sinners and tax collectors, they asked his disciples: “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

¹⁷ On hearing this, Jesus said to them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.”

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Sermon 

Rev. Marty Kemp will now preach the sermon titled Jesus Reveals our Deeper Need. 

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Confession of Sin 

In telling the story of the Lost Son, Jesus describes how the son “came to his senses, saying ‘I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ So he got up and went to his father” (Luke 15:17-20). 

We are called to be like this lost Son, returning to God our Father with repentance and faith. Let us confess our sins, praying together 

Heavenly Father, You have loved us with an everlasting love, But we have often gone our own way, and rejected your will for our lives. We are sorry for our sins and turn away from them. For the sake of your son who died for us, forgive us, cleanse us, and change us. By your Holy Spirit, enable us to live for you, and to please you in every way, for the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Amen 

Jesus tells us of the Father’s response, explaining that “while the son was still a far way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him” (Luke 15:20). This is how our Heavenly Father will respond to each of us as we return to him in the same way. 

Allow Belinda and Ian Steward to lead you in prayer! 

Let’s finish our time of prayer with the Lord’s Prayer together: 

Our Father in Heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread, and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  For the Kingdom, the power and glory are yours, now and forever,
Amen 

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Final Song 

Our musicians will lead us again as we close our time together. 

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Benediction 

Hear these words from Numbers 6:24-26. 

The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace. 

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord, 

In the name of Christ, Amen! 

Thanks for joining us! See you next week!