Sermon Notes - May 19, 2024
Follow Me / Mark 3 / Exposing the Religious Spirit
Pastor Chris Pletcher
Mark 3 //
Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there with a withered hand. 2 And they watched Jesus, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man with the withered hand, “Come here.” 4 And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out and immediately held counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.
7 Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great crowd followed, from Galilee and Judea 8 and Jerusalem and Idumea and from beyond the Jordan and from around Tyre and Sidon. When the great crowd heard all that he was doing, they came to him. 9 And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they crush him, 10 for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed around him to touch him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 And he strictly ordered them not to make him known.
13 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him. 14 And he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons. 16 He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom he gave the name Peter); 17 James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James (to whom he gave the name Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder); 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
20 Then he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.”
22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” 23 And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. 27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.
28 “Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the children of man, and whatever blasphemies they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”— 30 for they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”
31 And his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. 32 And a crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.” 33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34 And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”
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MARK Recap //
Mark was Peter’s secretary and translator
The account is believed to be Peter’s eyewitness testimony
Main themes… The Deliverance King has come to initiate the NEW BEGINNING of a Re-Creation Story. The Second Adam is here with a NEW BAPTISM that will forever change the course of history. Demons start to flee, a healing revival breaks out, and a spiritual renewal begins!
Let’s take a moment to survey what Mark has shown us so far about the beautiful heart of the Deliverance King…
Mark 1:15 “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”
Mark 1:17 “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”
Mark 1:25 “But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!”
Mark 1:37-39 “...and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.” And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.”
He wasn’t interested in being popular… but in loving people, spreading the Kingdom and being POWERFUL.
Mark 1:40-41 “And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.”
Mark 2:5 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”
Mark 2:16-17 And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, “Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?” And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”
Mark 3:4-5 And he said to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
Mark 3:25-27 “And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. 27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.
No wonder they call Him SAVIOR!
But notice again the spiritual agitation that Jesus is causing. It is critical for the church to grow in our discernment of spirits…
1 John 4:1-6
Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already. Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. They are from the world; therefore they speak from the world, and the world listens to them. We are from God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
Religious Spirit - ACCUSE & DESTROY
Holy Spirit - SAVE & RESTORE
Sabbath is a great picture of how the religious spirit distorts the gifts of God through legalism… “Do I HAVE to honor the Sabbath still?” is the wrong question. The truth is that God has made the Sabbath for man’s restoration… and ignoring the wise counsel (and commands) of the Lord will do the opposite… it will do harm.
Watch out for the Religious Spirit!
It is a spirit that loves to WATCH and ACCUSE those who are serving God.
The religious spirit accuses the work of the Holy Spirit by attributing it to unclean spirits (“by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.”)
This is the unpardonable sin… calling what is HOLY unclean and calling what is UNCLEAN holy.
Blasphemy definition:
the act or offense of speaking sacrilegiously about God or sacred things
to speak evil, to revile, to reproach
The inability to accurately discern between what is holy and what is profane, to the extent that you start speaking evil of what is actually GOOD.
Mark 3:22-27
And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “by the prince of demons he casts out the demons.” And he called them to him and said to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.
JESUS CAME TO BIND THE STRONG MAN! In His incarnation, Jesus entered the strong man’s house… in His death, He tied him up… and through His resurrection, HE IS PLUNDERING HIS HOUSE!
Colossians 2:13-15
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
John 16:32
Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”
1 John 5:4-5
For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
Jesus has DISARMED the strong man.
He has OVERCOME the world (which is synonymous with Satan’s dominion)
And He invites us into His victory BY FAITH.
Psalm 18:16-18
He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. He rescued me from my strong enemy and from those who hated me, for they were too mighty for me. They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but the Lord was my support.
Psalm 18:31-40
For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God?—
the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.
He made my feet like the feet of a deer and set me secure on the heights.
He trains my hands for war, so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze.
You have given me the shield of your salvation, and your right hand supported me,
and your gentleness made me great.
You gave a wide place for my steps under me, and my feet did not slip.
I pursued my enemies and overtook them, and did not turn back till they were consumed.
I thrust them through, so that they were not able to rise; they fell under my feet.
For you equipped me with strength for the battle; you made those who rise against me sink under me. You made my enemies turn their backs to me, and those who hated me I destroyed.
“I THRUST THEM THROUGH…” // Weapons of War for Every Believer
Grace - We simply cannot meet the demands of the performance spirit that rules over this region. Learning to rely on God’s grace and be “content with weakness” (2 Cor. 12:10) is a key to breakthrough for us. When we are weak, HE is strong. So we get to “be still and know that He is God” (Psalm 46:10).
Family - We simply cannot overcome the darkness in isolation. The church is called to be the “household of God” (Eph. 2:19) - learning how to lean on our Kingdom family is a key to our endurance and victory!
Worship - Triumphant praise of the Most High God challenges the fals ruling authorities (Eph. 6:12) that oppress us and our neighbors from the heavenly places. The Key of Worship unlocks strongholds and leads people into the freedom of the Kingdom of God (Acts 16:25-26).
Faith - We must BELIEVE that God is who He says He is. He will do what He says He will do. His words carry life and truth as our daily bread. Faith is simply confidence in His word over all else.
The Blood - We must regularly boast in the finished work of the cross (Gal. 6:14). The accuser is OVERCOME by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of our testimony (Rev. 12:11). Observing communion on a regular basis creates houses of freedom built on the remembrance of His blood poured out.
Acts 16:25-26
About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them,26 and suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken. And immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were unfastened.