Sunday 03-17-13 - Living Grace Fellowship

And He Healed them all: The Healing Ministry of Jesus IX.mp3

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Key Text:

Psalm 62

Luke 13:10-14

Luke 14:1-6

Luke 16:14-17

Matt. 11:12-19

Luke 17:11-19

Overview:

We began this morning with a stop of encouragement by reading through Ps. 62 and it wound up setting the pace for the rest of the message.

We focused on the Glory God receives when those who meet Him place the whole of their relational trust in Him as the answer to their need. This is tricky to say in English because we are so attuned to trust being for something or for some end result, but in the Kingdom of God it is always placed into God – with Him actually BEING the answer!

David said so throughout his psalm…

He only is my rock and my salvation;

He is my defense;

For my expectation is from Him.

He only is my rock and my salvation;

He is my defense; I shall not be moved.

In God is my salvation and my glory;

The rock of my strength, And my refuge, is in God.

Trust in Him at all times, you people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.

David does not put God out there as the One Who meets the need, but as the One Who in Himself IS the meeting of the need!

The same is trust concerning Healing. If we are sick we do not need healing, but the One Who IS my Health! God revealed Himself in this way Exodus 15:26 by saying, “I am Yehōwāh Rapa (Jehovah Rapha) which essentially means, The Lord Who IS your restoration to health.

You see we are very topical people and think of solutions as THINGS and EVENTS – we do not typically see needs met in terms of people, but things which people DO.

We are very “DO” oriented and God is very “BE” oriented.

When Jesus came to Mary and Martha following the death of Lazarus, He told Martha that Lazarus would rise again. Martha told Jesus that she knew he would at the last day in the resurrection. Jesus replied, “I AM the resurrection and the Life.”

So in healing God is glorified NOT so much by the healing, but by the life that has been restored back to Him through relational trust.

One example from the message found in Luke 17:11-19,

And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan. So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.” ~ Luke 17:15-19

Notice that it was the one who returned to Christ and with a heart filled with gratitude thanked God (not Christ). That restored heart of gratitude glorified God – not the healing itself. The healing was the tool to redeem the man. God is all about the redemption and restoration of hearts to Himself.

“that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, … .” ~ 2Cor. 5:19

Finally we read I Peter 1:3-9 & Rom. 6:1-14 to illustrate that the glory we receive from God is the realization of Christ in us. As Christ is manifest in us we are glorified and THAT glorifies God.

What is Glory?

It is the Greek word Doxo and simply means majesty, nobility, honor, might and splendor. It is a term which points NOT to the external as we typically use it in English, but to the internal character of a man. God is glorious not because He is spectacular to behold, but because He is WHO He is! It is His character that makes Him glorious, and so it is with us.

We are glorified as we become like Christ.

We become like Christ by bearing fruit birthed out of our union with Him (our vine).

The fruit of the spirit is all referring to the refined character of a maturing Christian which is not produced by self-effort, but by wholly relying upon the inner working of God within us and THAT glorifies God!

“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.” ~ John 15:8

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” ~ Philippians 2:12-13

So the encouragement today was to glorify God in our bodies by placing the health of our bodies in the Lord WHO IS out Health and through relational trust allow Him to manifest Himself in our flesh and thus Glorify Him!

Pastor Mark

View posts by Pastor Mark

Hi my name is Mark and though I am opposed to titles, I am currently the only Pastor (shepherd/elder) serving our assembly right now.

I have been Pastoring in one capacity or another for nearly 30 years now, though never quite like I am today.

Early in 2009 the Lord revealed to me that the way we had structured our assembly (church) was not scriptural in that it was out of sync with what Paul modeled for us in the New Testament. In truth, I (like many pastors I am sure) never even gave this fundamental issue of church structure the first thought. I had always assumed that church structure was largely the same everywhere and had been so from the beginning. While I knew Paul had some very stringent things to say about the local assembly of believers, the point of our gatherings together and who may or may not lead, I never even considered studying these issues but assumed we were all pretty much doing it right...safety in numbers right?! Boy, I couldn't have been more wrong!

So needless to say, my discovery that we had been doing it wrong for nearly two decades was a bit of a shock to me! Now, this "revelation" did not come about all at once but over the course of a few weeks. We were a traditional single pastor led congregation. It was a top-bottom model of ministry which is in part biblical, but not in the form of a monarchy.

The needed change did not come into focus until following 9 very intense months of study and discussions with those who were leaders in our church at the time.

We now understand and believe that the Bible teaches co-leadership with equal authority in each local assembly. Having multiple shepherds with God's heart and equal authority protects both Shepherds and sheep. Equal accountability keeps authority and doctrine in check. Multiple shepherds also provide teaching with various styles and giftings with leadership skills which are both different and complementary.

For a while we had two co-pastors (elders) (myself and one other man) who led the church with equal authority, but different giftings. We both taught in our own ways and styles, and our leadership skills were quite different, but complimentary. We were in complete submission to each other and worked side-by-side in the labor of shepherding the flock.

Our other Pastor has since moved on to other ministry which has left us with just myself. While we currently only have one Pastor/Elder, it is our desire that God, in His faithfulness and timing, may bring us more as we grow in maturity and even in numbers.

As to my home, I have been married since 1995 to my wonderful wife Terissa Woodson who is my closest friend and most trusted ally.

As far as my education goes, I grew up in a Christian home, but questioned everything I was ever taught.

I graduated from Bible college in 1990 and continued to question everything I was ever taught (I do not mention my college in order to avoid being labeled).

Perhaps my greatest preparation for ministry has been life and ministry itself. To quote an author I have come to enjoy namely Fredrick Buechner in his writing entitled, Now and Then, "If God speaks to us at all other than through such official channels as the Bible and the church, then I think that He speaks to us largely through what happens to us...if we keep our hearts open as well as our ears, if we listen with patience and hope, if we remember at all deeply and honestly, then I think we come to recognize beyond all doubt, that, however faintly we may hear Him, He is indeed speaking to us, and that, however little we may understand of it, His word to each of us is both recoverable and precious beyond telling." ~ Fredrick Buechner

Well that is about all there is of interest to tell you about me.

I hope our ministry here is a blessing to you and your family. I also hope that it is only a supplement to a local church where you are committed to other believers in a community of grace.

~God Bless!