The People of the Messiah
I. Two TYPES of PEOPLE. (Mark 2:17)
A. The “SINNERS” – Those on the MARGINS. (2:14-16,18,23-24; 3:1,10-11,13-14, 34)
B. The “RIGHTEOUS” – Those with the POWER. (2:16,18,24; 3:6,21-22)
C. Words of IRONY and SARCASM. (2:17)
D. More about POSTURE than SUBSTANCE. (3:5,7,13,35)
There’s always a danger in over-generalizations. It’s not a good idea to oversimplify realty and say, “There’s two types of people.” But what I want to do today is to use these two categories of Jesus to help us understand what it means to be a follower of Jesus, and what it means to resist that.
1. Who are the people on “the margins” in the world today? How are they treated and why?
2. Who are the people in power? Which of the two do you most identify with?
II. Some are DRAWN, others are OUTRAGED. (3:6-7)
A. NEED as opposed to SUFFICIENCY. (2:15-17; 3:1-6)
B. TEACHABLE as opposed to already CONVINCED. (2:12-27; 3:20-30)
C. Following JESUS as opposed to keeping TRADITION. (2:16,18,24; 3:2,31-34)
As you see the interactions in our text today there are these two streams, people who are drawn to Jesus, and people who are angry at Jesus and want to get rid of Him. Each group is characterized by traits that we can identify, and hopeful either emulate or avoid in our own lives.
3. Kid’s question: What do you like about Jesus? Is there something you’re drawn to about Him?
4. Does the church of today reward and encourage “need” or “sufficiency”? In what ways do we do this and why do you think we do it?
5. When can conviction and confidence be a bad thing? How can we know when we are in those situations?
III. Being the PEOPLE of the MESSIAH. (Acts 11:26)
A. God is DRAWN to those at the MARGINS. (Ps. 34:18)
B. God RESISTS the PROUD. (Lk 1:50-52; Prov. 3:34)
C. Jesus RE-CENTRES everything around HIMSELF. (2:19,28; Jn 14:6)
D. His PEOPLE follow His EXAMPLE. (1 Pet. 2:21)
The question really comes down to us today, “Will we be the people of the Messiah?” It has little to do with what we say we believe and everything to do with whether we follow the example in life of Jesus. The text points us in the right direction, the question is if we will follow.
6. Who are the people in your life that you think God is drawn to? How will you respond to that truth?
7. How can we tell what our life is centred around? What are signs that we are centred on the wrong things?
8. Describe what Jesus would look like and do if He was to live your life in the coming week. What does that say to you?