Sermon Notes from Sunday 8.15.10

Here are the sermon notes from today, Sunday, 8.15.10.  We continued through Mark's Gospel and looked at Jesus' encounter with the Pharisees and the conflict over hand-washing.  I think we had some website problems last week, but this week should be smoother on that front.  Therefore, you should be able to find the audio and these notes in PDF at sermons.heritagepark.org in the early part of this week.  May God grant us the grace to hear His Word and courage to live it.  Amen.

Jesus v. Religion (Rd. 1)

Mark 7.1-13

Religion:  the place people run to be respected when they refuse to be real.

4 Markers of Religion

1. Redefining to suit their worldview
2. Canonizing common sense
3. Focusing on fences
4. Institutionalizing self-preservation

Jesus’ Response to Religion

He gets ruthless

• He calls them names and calls them out.
• He relentlessly shows them for what they are:  self-righteous hypocrites. 
• He refuses to allow them to void God’s message by shrouding it in rules.

He gets personal

• Jesus makes sure that we know we must personally reckon with Him.
• The question has been asked and must be answered:  Who do you say I am?

He exposes idols

• Idol and rules are inseparable.
• Rule:  I must keep all the rules.
• Rule:  I must break all the rules.
• Both are idolatry in the heart because they set self above God.

He offers a different way

• The hint of Jesus’ way:  “their heart is far from me” (v.6).
• He does not want us to obey – He wants to transform us into people who normally obey.