Mark 1:14-20 Epiphany 3B The Two Things Needful January 20 th /21 st, 2018 Grace and peace to you all from God our Father and Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen. What are some of the most important things you need to do? We all have responsibilities after all. We are duty bound to our family to care for them, watch out for them, and provide for them. We are duty bound to our work. We need to show up on time, leave on time, we need to be productive, we need to do what we are supposed to for our bosses, our managers, and so on. We need to pay our bills, we need to take care of our living quarters, we need to put gas in our car, we need to pay taxes, we need do a lot of things otherwise if we neglect those responsibilities our lives begin to slowly unravel. In the realm of adult responsibilities we all have things we absolutely need to do. As I was maturing through those early adult years, I remember working at Sam s Club as a cart pusher for a couple of summers. I did what I was supposed to and I enjoyed it: Pushing carts in the warm sunny weather, helping people load up their cars and occasional receiving a tip when I wasn t supposed, and getting a free Sam s Club membership (actually my parents enjoyed that benefit more than I did.) One day a very needful thing I needed to do was to be at work on a Saturday the busiest day of the week. But there was a problem. I had an all day concert to be at. I couldn t be at two places at one time. So you can probably guess what I did. I went to the concert, yes. The next day I was at work, I got a nice little scolding. The manager asked what was more important to me: Working or gallivanting off to some concert. I said to the guy, I still remember the surprised look on his face, music is more important to me right now in my life. And I wasn t lying or trying to be a smart-aleck, I just told him what I felt. After the shock, he looked at me, walked away and told me get back to work and not to do it again. The needful thing I was supposed to do, I didn t. I didn t even call in, just a no-call/no-show. Honestly, I m lucky he didn t fire me right there and then. He probably could have, but didn t. This what we call mercy. Not getting what you deserve. 1
Looking at our passage today from Mark 1:14-20 we see there are two key needful things all people are commanded to do because of Jesus Christ and the kingdom of God he has brought: Repent and believe. Jesus breaks onto the scene in Mark s gospel, like a lion pouncing on his prey, and flat out gives us the imperative command: Repent and believe the Good News. Those are the two things needful: Repent and believe the Good News. Before I unpack the two things needful, if you can, I want you to imagine how truly offensive Jesus statement is. We hear those words so often in church we forget their force, their power, how offensive they are. Jesus says: Repent. Actually, as Jesus is out in the wilderness with John I imagine he doesn t go around saying softly, Repent guys, it s good for you, please won t you repent? No I imagine he s yelling, shouting, making an absolute scene saying REPENT, REPENT, REPENT! The kingdom is here, the jig is up, REPENT! Now, who needs to repent? This is why his words are offensive, by the way. Everyone. Who? Everyone. Does that mean me? Yes, that means you too. Why? Because of sin, because we are under the just condemnation of a holy God for being in rebellion against our Creator. If things were just fine in this world, there would ve been no reason for Jesus to show up yelling REPENT! I think we forget that. Jesus calling out sinners back then, just like today, is offensive. Why else is this offensive? Because we like to imagine we re just fine. Or, we re like the self-righteous Pharisee in Luke 18:11 God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. Only we say, God, thank you I m not like Donald Trump, or Bill Clinton, or even closer to home like people in the Escanaba jail, those druggies, those homeless folks, those Native Americans on the reservation down the highway. Something I ve heard a few times IN THIS CHURCH. Do you not hear the absolute hypocrisy in those words? What Jesus said, yelled, applies still: Repent. 2
Here s the big issue with the two things needful, and this can and does happen to any of you, I guarantee it. I ve heard it. The two things needful again are repent and believe the good news. When Jesus says these words, you all can easily fall into the trap of not hearing the two things needful but only hear ONE needful thing. When you only hear ONE needful thing this means you cling to one word or the other. You either get stuck on repent and ignore believe the gospel, or you ignore repent and get stuck on believe the gospel. Getting stuck on ONE needful thing and not embracing the two things needful, is absolutely dangerous to our life of faith. How so? Let me explain. Lets look at repent first. When you get stuck on REPENT and ignore believe the Gospel, this is what happens. You look at yourself and all you see is filth, rags, sin, that there s nothing redeemable about you, that there s nothing lovable about you. You re lost, you re unworthy, but there s nothing you can do. Getting caught only on REPENT leads to depression, doubt, bitterness, resentment, self-loathing, self-pity. If all you do is focus on how awful you are and ignore beautiful promise of the Gospel, of the Good News, that the kingdom of God has come precisely for you, yes you; if you ignore the Gospel and stay stuck on repent, that s a recipe for disaster. Sadly, some churches and preachers have destroyed people s faith because that s all they focus on. It s like telling your child how awful of a person they are and never bother to help them do better. It s like going to the doctor, getting a lecture about how unhealthy you are, but the doctor gives you no plan to make you better OR getting the doctor s orders to help you, and it includes painful surgery at first with no pain killers prescribed after. Only focusing on repent is dangerous. 3
Just as dangerous is only focusing on believe the Gospel at the expense of repent. People who fall into this camp are folks who think that because they know all the right things about God they may be baptized, confirmed, go to church every weekend, give offerings, be on church council, and so on because they know all the right answers about God, they don t need to repent of their sin. This is also such an unhealthy way of faith. In fact, it really isn t a way faith at all but a mask. It s like putting lipstick on a pig. The pig might be prettier, but it still stinks, it s still a pig. Pastor tells us what you mean in plain English. Okay, here s what this mean: If you say you are a Christian but go on doing un-christian things, things that are inconsistent with the Christian walk of faith this means you. If you think you can follow and believe in Jesus Christ but treat other people with hostility and disrespect, this might apply to you. If you think you can follow and believe in Jesus Christ and lie about people, talk behind their back, and so on, this might apply to you. If you think you can follow and believe in Jesus Christ and have an addiction to drugs, pills, material possessions that will rust and rot, or an addiction to alcohol, or pornography, then this might apply to you. And no, you can t say well I m not hurting anyone else then you don t realize how much your sin offends God. If you think you can follow and believe in Jesus Christ but gamble your money away, the money you could leave for your children, your grandchildren, your church, the poor and the hungry, this might apply to you. St. Paul puts it this way in Galatians 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. Who, again is Paul talking to? Fellow Christians. He s warning them. Warning them why? So they don t lose their salvation. 4
This is why we need to remember the two things needful: REPENT AND BELIEVE in the Gospel. Repent why? Because you are far worse off with God than you could ever imagine. There s no sugar coating that. No amount of lipstick can cover up our sin. We re so bad that God himself had to show up to fix things and had to issue the ultimate warning: Repent. Apart from Christ, we are fired from God s club. That if we want to go on sinning like it s going out of style, well, there s a place reserved for people like that and you don t want to go there, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth, because there and you know where I m talking about there no excuses will be listened to, no mercy given. But wouldn t you know, Jesus has come. The kingdom of God is near, it s here. It s near because Jesus is here! Believe the good news, the Gospel! Jesus was sent to fix you, to save you, to forgive you, to put to death in you everything that is unrighteous, unholy, and despicable so that you YES YOU! would be the righteous, the adopted, the sanctified, the most beloved and holy and joyful child of God because you have been washed by the blood of the Lamb, your debt has been paid by Christ on the cross, no longer guilty and condemned but freed. In Christ you are free, you are free, free at last (as MLK Jr. would say). This is why you need remember the two things needful: Repent and believe the Gospel whether you re a new Christian, an old Christian or anywhere in between. You repent because your struggle against sin, against the flesh, against Satan is real, and difficult, and lifelong and you can feel the crushing weight of your burdens. But even more, you also believe the gospel, the good news. Jesus has conquered sin, death, and Satan s stranglehold on your life and, here s the best news, Jesus has conquered you. You re done for. By surrendering to his magnificent and life giving power, by being caught in the paws of the Lion of Judah (Revelation 5:5), then life, true life, God s life, can and will stream and flow and course through your veins, 5
though your mind, through your heart, day after day after day. And day by day you can hear his clear voice sounding saying, Christian, follow me. Amen. HOD: ELW # 696 Jesus calls us over the tumult 6