bless you, God bless you this evening. Thank you for joining us, wherever you are, across the surface, even let God bless you and strengthen you, by God's hand always be upon you, we're going to turn into the gospel of Mark in just a few moments where people just jump online. Wherever you are tonight, just pray that God will just guide you and strengthen you. And you will see the power of the Holy Spirit as you already have in your life. And God will continue to move as he always will. And he always has you feel the presence of the redeemer in your life, right. God bless you. And we thank you so much wherever you are this evening, whether you're on holiday, the children are way off school. Certain areas of work have closed down a little bit. Universities are on the back of the back foot. So wherever you are tonight, may God bless you and strengthen you. Wherever you are capturing this live stream service from. We just say welcome. Hallelujah. May God be with you tonight. Thank you for joining us here in Elim church, this live stream. Church services we gather around the word of God has we rest in His presence as we be still. And we know that He is the God of Israel, Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Nissi, Jehovah shalom, He is our God, He is our king. And I would like to take us to the Gospel of Mark this evening. And for everyone that's just jumping online. And for those in the world of podcasting, we thank you so much for the downloads through Apple Music. And we thank you for I heart, radio, and many other platforms that this is going out from. So wherever you are, let's turn let's turn to Mark chapter four, Mark chapter four. Just very quickly, we just want to quickly let you know that we prayed for a gentleman the other day, a gentleman, one of our brothers, that this house, and for his brother, his brother had serious heart conditions, he's out of hospital. And we just want to encourage you to keep praying for him. And the brother of this house, the brother in Christ, he was able to give a Bible to his blood brother. And we pray that God will open the brothers heart that he will read the word that has been given to him. So the power of prayer is really, really critical. That's why we have these prayer networks. And that's why we have and we do what we do. Prayer is really, really powerful. May God bless you and strengthen you, as you join us tonight online. But we're going to turn to the Gospel of Mark chapter three, there's a lot packed, there's a lot packed in this gospel that we're in this evening, there's a lot squeezed into this text that we're in and I just pray that God will reveal them certain areas of this text that he wants us to, to get to. And I just thank God for your life. So let's get in and let's have a read together. We're gonna go from chapter three, Mark chapter three, we go from Mark chapter three from verse seven. And I'll just skip down a little bit and we're gonna go, the main area we want to get to is run about verse 20. Ran out there and they're in woods and get right away down to the bottom. But this this is about Jesus is calling the disciples. It's also referring to his family, to his brothers to his mom, to the calling of the cycle. There's there's a lot packed in there. So I believe that there will be many of us that will get quite a lot from different areas of the text. Some will get one part more than someone else but God through the revelation or knowledge that he uses in the supernatural way that He speaks to us through His Word, we will capture one point so this speaks to leaders this speaks to us, to me in the congregation this speaks to, to me as a son, it is very, very clear. But the the main stretch of the text tonight is that I'll just like to mention is something I'm not it's quite an interesting subject and quiet a delicate subject as well because not many people tackle it not many people address it. And not many people speak about it from over the pulpit and it is about Do not allow your family to shape you, and to control you into someone that you are not. So that is the main stretch of the text that I wanted to get to tonight, it's about, you could call a very, when you when you look at this text, a very strong charge over Jesus a very strong word over him. So let's have a read and I pray that God will reveal to each and every one of us this scripture, so it's about Christ walking in his colon, walking in the fullness of the Messiah. But even as he's walking in the fullness of the Messiah, and he's calling the 12, there's something very interesting about the family connection, there is something interesting that if you are a believer in your family, and God has called you, and you are anointed, and you are cold, and you are a child of the living God, or you are a Christian or whatever, however, you will find that there will be family members that will look at you and see you and your calling, and your faith and disregard and will not look at you how Christ looks at you, they will look at you, just as you are in the family, family arena, I just want to spend a little bit of time I'm going to take it steady. And I'm just going to pray that God will will will move through this. But there are many people in jobs in the circle of life, in relationships, in marriages in in pastoral positions. There are many people that have been appointed, they've been appointed but not anointed, they've been called for a set purpose. And there is a difference between being called and anointed and then appointed and put into a certain position. So there are there is a lot coming from this text. And I don't want to gallop ahead. But let's just read, I've said this. So let's just read. So the foundation of what I was reading and looking at earlier, was about the press from the family on Jesus's life. And I believe that there are many in families tonight, I'm going to say it there are many families that are really being herded and really been shaped and really been almost manipulated into a cultural trend and a cultural pattern, and also into a pattern of how the parents or the one in the relationship or the other one in the partner, whatever it is in, we're talking about in the circle of a relationship, whether that's children, whether that's husband or a wife, whether you're single, whether you're living at home with mom and dad, what the SIRT your family, your family, got to be careful that we're not shaped by our family, and not taken seriously. In our belief in the King of kings and the Lord of lords. I'm going to read this because this is quite a touchy text tonight is is quite a quite a deep text because let's let's just read let's just read Come on. Let's get it right now. First seven of Mark chapter three, Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, a large crowd from Galilee followed. Then they had heard and what he was doing and many people come from Jerusalem and outside the regions across the Jordan from Tyra and inside run. Because of the crowd was there he told the disciples to get in a small boat and get ready for him to keep the people from crowding him. Now here we go, verse 10, verse 10, of Mark chapter three, it says, For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushed forward, to touch him. When the in verse 11, when the impure spirits saw him, they fell down to the ground and cried out, you are the Son of God, but He gave them strict orders, not to tell others about Him. Verse 13, of Mark, chapter three, Jesus went up onto the mountainside and called to him those he wanted. And they came to him, verse 14, he appointed 12, that they might be with him and that they might and that he might send them out to preach, and he gave them all authority to drive out demons. These are the 12. He appointed that list the 12, obviously, but skipping down if we go to verse 20, if we if we jump down to verse 20. And it says, Then Jesus entered the house again. And that crowd was with him. So that he and his disciples were not able to eat when his family heard about out this, they went to take charge of him. For they said he's out of his mind. And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, this is this is really, really quite a powerful thing. And they're saying to Jesus, he is possessed by Beelzebub, the prince of demons, he is driving out demons. So Jesus called over to them and he began to speak to them in parables. Can Satan drive out Satan, if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. If a house is divided against itself, it cannot that house cannot stand. And if Satan appears, opposes sorry, himself, and is divided, he cannot stand. His end has come. In fact, no one can enter a strong man's house, first without tying up the strong men. And then they can plan to the strong man's house. Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven of their sins and even slander and utterances. But whoever blaspheme against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. They are guilty of an eternal sin. Now, he said this, because they were saying that he had an impure spirit. Now, first 31, Jesus, mother and brothers arrived, standing outside, they sent someone in to call him, a crowd was sitting around him. And they told him, your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you. Who are my mother and my brothers, he asked. Then he looked at those that were seated in a circle around him. And he said, here are my mother. And my brothers, who does God's will, is my brother, and my sister and my mother. When when we look at this text, this is a really interesting text. And the reason I say that is because of there is a lot of family pressing against you as an individual. There may be discord as well in family, there may be issues in family life at this moment. So when you look at Christ in this text that we're in, what I'm finding is really, really fascinating is that Christ in the Gospel that we're in in Mark chapter three, it makes this really clear from verse seven, it says, Jesus withdrew, and he went up to the place of Galilee, a large crowd around him. But then as you go further in verse 13, what is really interested in areas as Jesus went up to the mountainside, and he called those that he had wanted, and when they came to him, he appointed 12. So here we have Christ, around about 29 to 30 years old. He is, he's a, he's a man. We might say, he's a young man. He's He's starting his ministry, he's calling the disciples. So this is a really important part of Christ's ministry. This is the beginning. This is where he is calling the 12, to walk with him, but also he says, that they might be with him, and that he might send them out to preach. So there is that the word that has been picked up here twice is a word might. So these disciples have been called. And they have been spoken over by Christ at the age of around about 3029 30 years old. So this is Jesus. He's not young, young, but he's not old. He is around about 2930 years old. So he's a young man. He's a carpenter, we understand Christ, what he what he was and how he grew up in his father's house, and his mother's house. And I'm not referring to the temple. I'm not referring to that scripture, I'm referring to when he grew up with his brothers and his family. When you look at Christ before he was called in and placed into this ministerial position here we see very clearly, what we will say a young Christ are starting to be mature, and in his adult walk, as a human being. So what we see is Christ starting to speak over the crowds, and what's really powerful as well, even the impure spirits, as soon as they see Jesus, they fall down, they fall away. And there's this dialogue, and there's this conversation between these impure spirits, and Christ and Christ says this, and they actually say to him, You are the Son of God. Really interested in here? I've said this a few times. And I'm really interesting because it is interesting. This is a really interesting part of the text that we are in. So what we have we have Christ we have Christ starting his ministry, or walking in His ministry, walking in the calling of God, from the Father in heaven, we have a real clear understanding that this is Christ. may be at the beginning of His ministry, where he is calling His disciples. So this is a very powerful time, he's just been dealing with some impure spirits and the impure spirits, the demonic forces clearly fall down and the demonic forces understand who Jesus is. So this is important for for any believer to understand is that when you are a true disciple, a true believer, and on the other side of the lens, I don't know who you are tonight, but I believe that God is with you, and you are saved, and you are blessed, and you are a child and living God, you are a daughter, excuse me, and you are a son of the living God. So what we got to remember is, is that greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world. So this text that we are looking at is about spiritual warfare. And this is about the spiritual entities, the spiritual, spiritual demonic forces that are at work that recognize Christ. See, the demonic forces recognize Christ in this text. But if we was to accelerate a bit further on in the text, and go go down a little bit further, we will find that even his mum and his brothers don't understand who Jesus is, because they say, they say this very clearly, because the text tells us this is the out of his mind. So they don't understand who Jesus is. So I'm gonna put it basically straight like this over this. A lot of people in your circle of life, including your family, don't realize who you are in Christ Jesus, they don't realize the anointing that you carry, they don't realize in the blessing that you hold on to, they don't realize that God has called you. And I'm going to even go a little bit further to say that there could be people in your circle, that are not even believers. So they will not understand what and who is calling you, and why you are different. See, Christ was different, but his family could not recognize the difference between Jesus the Son, Jesus, the brother, he says, the family went up to the door, and they called in, they went up, and they sent someone in, tell him come out here, what is he doing Is he out of his mind, but the demonic forces, the spiritual entities, the demonic forces, recognize this is the Son of God. So there are people in your life, there are people in the stretch of your workplace, there are people in your community, there are people in your culture, there are people in your home, that do not even know who you are in Christ Jesus, they do not realize the authority that you carry. Now, let's just hold this a moment. Now we see that Christ, it says that he appointed, there's a difference between an appointment and an anointing, we clearly understand that an appointment is that they are called for a task and a set purpose. So Christ is calling them for a set purpose. And the scripture goes on a little bit further. And it says something really, really clear. And it says that he might, he might choose them, he might send them and he might use them. So he completely uses here a very clear indicator that he might or he may not, yes, I will, yes, I don't know, I might, I might not. So there's a clear indicator that this is not about an anointing. This isn't about an appointment, there is something different about an appointment, then something different than an anointing. Now we understand up in the Gospel of John, when the disciples were together a God and Christ was moving. We understand for the scripture that Christ breathes over the disciples. And he says this, he says, received the Holy Spirit. So it's not until Christ God the Father in heaven, breathes over the disciples that they become anointed. So there's a difference between an appointed and appointment. And there are many people that have put themselves in ministries that are in an appointment, but they're not carrying the anointing it this is a big text that we are in tonight. But I got to be careful that I don't stretch over into the leadership speech and into the area of callings and the elect, and everything that runs with that. But this is where Christ if used to stay in the text, and I'm in and we're in Mark chapter three, and from verse seven, and especially verse 13. It says, Jesus went up to the mountainside and he called his disciples, the ones that he wanted to journey with him. There's a difference between journeying with him and walking with him and then having an anointing to do certain tasks, certain measures, and certain areas of ministry. We have many in pulpits within the UK that have been self appointed, and not anointed So here we have a classic scripture example of, of being called and being chosen, but not being anointed, there is a difference so we can get from the bag of church we get from the bag of religion, there are a lot of people that are very educated and very well spoken that are in leadership positions. So they have been called, they have been appointed by the church, but not necessarily anointed by Jesus. So there is a difference, there is a clear difference. And we understand that education. And we understand that academics and academia has no forbearance on a spiritual calling, because when God calls he gives the gifts, and he gives the gifts without repentance, now is a very interesting part of the text there. So what we have in this text and this dialogue in his conversation, in this two way, conversation between Jesus is mom and and the crowd and not just the crowd, but also we have the demonic forces, the impure spirits. So let's backtrack a moment to build up to this point. So what we have is Christ dealing with impure spirits, he has dealt with the impure spirits. And once he has dealt with the impure spirits, then he goes out, and then he calls and he appoints 12 disciples. But in between all this, everything that's going on these impure spirits, say something very powerful to Jesus, that the text obviously, picks up. So let's just read it with ourselves, I'm going to take my time, so we can, so we can just get a bit of a flavor and a bit of an understanding of what's going on. I'm just want to backtrack, a backtrack to verse seven. So Jesus withdrew, and he went up with his disciples and on the lake and allowed a large crowd gathered around him. And he began to speak and he began to preach, and he began to deal with impure spirits. So from verse 11, in Mark chapter three, it says this, When the impure spirits saw him, so that obviously there is a visual understanding of Christ, if he was to accelerate, and to quicken and go a little bit further in the text, we clearly understand that Jesus, his mother is in the arena of this text, and his brothers are there, but they don't recognize who Christ really is. And I will emphasize this again, in the circle of your life, in the circle of your family, in the circle of your work in the circle of your experience. There are many in your life that don't realize that you have a calling on your life, and God is calling you, and God is drawing you, and Christ is walking with you. And especially I'm going to put it as blunt as this, your family don't recognize what God is doing in you, and through you. And around you. They just see you as you. Because this is clear in the text tonight, that his family just see Jesus as the carpenter, as the young man as the brother as the son. How can you say that because the Scripture makes it very clear. This is what the Scripture says about Jesus when his family rolls up to where he is. And it says, Then Jesus entered the house again, first 20. And the crowd gathered, so that him and his disciples were not able to eat, when his family heard about this, your family are hearing your family has been hearing for years of miracles and an areas of your life where God has blessed you, but they cannot engage. They cannot understand the colon and the anointing on your life. This is great. And this is a powerful text to be in tonight, your family are still gritty with you, your family can still be upset with you, they can still give you a slap around the back of the year and all that sort of stuff. Jesus says brothers and Jesus's mother could not really recognize what he was doing at this point. And when you look at this text, he is calling the disciples. Not only is he calling the 12, he's appointing them for future works for preaching and for driving out demonic forces because that's what it says in the text. But he appointed he's appointing and he's putting these disciples in a very important position in scriptural balance in a scripture position. Christ is putting them in position for the New Testament to continue to move, but his family do not recognize what he is doing, who he really is. But then suddenly, if we pedal back again, now come back to the impure spirits. It says When the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, I will tell you this. Dark Forces recognize Jesus more than your family and church goers. And I will say religious people recognize Jesus and the anointing on your life. There are people in the circle of your life, there are people around you, there are people walking with you, whether you're at university, whether you're married or married, whether you're, whatever your presses on this life, whether you live at home, whether you live on your own, the circle of the community, that you walk in, and you operate in, and you live in, and you minister in and you work in, and you live in, they do not recognize who you are in God, because Christ is in God. He says something very clearly he says, I am here to do the work on my father, I am doing my father's will. So he is under the true obedience of the God of Israel, Our Father who art in heaven, we understand what the New Testament says about the model of prayer that Christ gives us. But I will put it again to you, there are people in your life that will never realize who you really are in Christ Jesus, they are trying to manipulate you. And also they are trying to stop the stretch that you have upon you, and the colon that is within you, and they are trying to control you here we have a good story. And I will say biblical facts as well as the story. And as well as, as well as this narrative that we are reading about a family trying to control a son, not just a son, but the Son of the living God, not just the Son of the living God. But if he was to turn to the book of Colossians, chapter one, it says this, Christ is the image of the invisible God. So there are many trying to control what Christ is doing with you and to you and through you in your life. There are many trying to control Jesus, they looked at Jesus, and they just see Jesus as a brother, and a son, and as a family member. And I'm afraid to say this happens in a mass percentage of certain areas and the certain circles of life. God has called you got to saved you. But isn't it interesting that family can sometimes try to stop and hinder what God is doing? This is a very interesting, I've said this a few times. This is a very powerful, this is a very deep text. So let's let's reiterate. Let's just pedal back a moment. We have Christ, we have Christ, teaching and walking and withdrawing from the crowd. And also the crowd is attracted to Jesus. So there is an attachment there is an attraction to Jesus, because the crowd are looking and they are attracted. So what we find is that there is something within Christ that he's drawing, there is something about Christ that is drawing the crowd. So he's drawing the crowd, miracles are happening. But if you were to look, please have a look for yourself and look at verse 11. Now in verse 11, I want to I just want to hold a moment in verse 11. When the impure spirits saw him, they fell down before him and they cried out, the impure spirits are recognizing the Messiah. Don't only do they recognize him as the Messiah, but they say, You are the Son of God. They are giving Christ the authority that is due to Him. Family do not give you the authority, and the space that you need and the recognition who you are in Christ, not because you are a super you, but because who is living in you because the demons said, You are the son of the Son of God, and you are children of the living God. And God is in you, your children, your parents, your work colleagues, your family, your wife, your husband, your brothers, your sisters, do not recognize you and cannot see what Christ sees in you. Even the church and religious order and religious people will not see the anointing and the calling on your life. The Scripture is clear. So no wonder there is trouble in family circles. You are a believer, you believe from Genesis to Revelation. You might be married, unmarried, you might have brothers, you might have sisters, you might be a single parent family. It doesn't matter what the label you have on yourself as a human being a son or a daughter, married or married, going through divorce, just getting married, it doesn't matter what label you have, or I have on me, what is very clear in the circle of our family, that the family will not recognize who we are in Christ Jesus, because this family did not even recognize what he was doing. What was Christ doing? Christ was dealing with impure spirits. And he was also calling the 12. He was calling the church he was calling the disciples together, he was appointing them, but he did not anoint them. The anointing and the infilling of the Holy Spirit comes up in the Gospel of John, where he says, and Christ breathed on them, and they was filled with the Holy Spirit. So there is a difference between there is a time gap from from being anointed. And being appointed, and being called and being chosen. Patience is is a very important part of our life. God may have given you a vision, God may have given you a call, and God may have put somebody in your life, God may have done something and and shown you something, but it's not relevant for in the timezone that we are in at this moment in time. But I find this very restless when God drops something in our spirit, and shows us what will be, but we can't have what will be until his timing lines up. So I've got to rest and be patient and be still and know that he's gone to understand whatever God has dropped in us through a vision or a dream, or a person or anointing or a calling. And it's not for this moment in time. We see this in the classic text in the Old Testament of David and his brothers, when David's father called that great prophet, and he said, Look, I've got some sons, I want you to look at them. I want you to see if they are going to be the king. Are you going to anoint them? And they come through the tent and that great prophet, that great anointing man, he calls them in? And he says, No, it's not them. No, it's not them. And David's dad said, I've got one more is out in the field. Let me call him. So young David comes into the tent. He comes into this tent, and some in the profit when he's the geezer. What he didn't actually use that I'm, I'm speaking in my, in my lazy speech. That's the one that is that's him. So the anointing is placed on young David, did David go from that tent of anointing? Did he go straight to the throne? Was he was he taken from the from the anointing straight to the kings chair cheer? No, he was anointed he was called, he was chosen. He was spoken over, he was prophesied over. But where did he go? He went back to the field. There is a powerful place that many of us need to go to. And that is the field. What is the field the field of life, the field, what happened in the field where David was, he was on his own for hours for nights for days. He was fighting a bear and a lion and a tiger in a field on his own, that no one see, he was fighting his biggest battles in a secret place. And his anointing. And his appointment was two different worlds apart. He was anointed, but he wasn't appointed and an appointment means placed into that position. See, David was anointed before he was appointed before he was placed into that position of kingship. So he had to go back to the field. So coming back to what I was saying a moment ago, I find it very difficult living in what I see before me, when I know what is in front of me, and what I mean by what is in front of me what God has shown me what God has spoken to me about and you understand what I'm saying maybe people that you're journeying with maybe certain areas of ministry, certain places of life when God has called you got a spoke and God has given you a word, God has dropped something in your spirit, you know in your knower, that you know that you know that you know that you know that this is going happen. But at the moment, I've got to live in the reality of what is around me. I've got an anointing I've got a call in, we're blessed and highly favored God has put people in our lives for a certain time, a certain purpose of a certain reason. But that is not lining up with life at the moments of patience. So where did David go after he was anointed, he went back to the field. And he went back to 10 sheep, he went back living in the darkness of night, he went back into that place. And what is really important to understand, for me is that we got many people, many leaders, I will say that because there aren't, they are leaders. We have leaders that have been appointed, but not anointed. We see this through the Scripture. And also what we recognize in this text that this is bigger than what I'm talking about the moment is that you are anointed and you are appointed, and you are called, and you are chosen. And God has given you a vision, and God has given you a dream. But you have got to live in the reality of your eyesight at this moment in time. But you know, God has placed someone, something some area of ministry are calling a purpose on your life. And you know that what you are walking in at this moment, doesn't line up with the colon and the purpose on your life. But you've got to go where I've got to go to the field, the field is a very powerful place, the field is a lonely place, the field, the wilderness of life, is the circle of life of living, of almost being lonely, hour after hour fighting, trying to look after and and trying to move in it within the darkness and trying to see David was a watchman as well, because he had to watch in the in the darkness of darkness, we don't understand what darkness is through the power of light. Because we have a lot of residual light, we have a lot of light around us. So we don't really see darkness is full extent. But if he was like dark David and he went into the wilderness, they didn't have no light of floating around, they didn't have any aircraft, they didn't have any ambient light just floating around, but they experienced pure darkness. So David had to learn in the dead darkness of night to be alert to watch out for the lion for the bear for the tiger for whatever was that was trying to come and maul him. So there is this is a very important part for many of us in our lives, we got to stay in the field a little bit longer, because you have been anointed you have been chosen. There is a set purpose, there is a set reason. And there are many people in relationships. There are many people in jobs. There are many people almost looking across the other side of the table at one another thinking, what is this life all about? Looking across the desk from one another guy? What is this life all about? What is the reason for the season that I'm in? And I would put it to you like this? Get back into the field? What do you mean, get back into the field, get back into a place where you are spiritually alert, watching in the dead of night. Because we are living in in the days of Noah we are living in very powerful and very spiritual times. And God is calling and God is drawing. God has given visions and dreams we see that through the book of Acts. We see it through the book of Joel, in the last days it says God will pour out His Spirit on all flesh. And the rest of the text we we understand that very clearly. So let's let's get back to where we started out. So as you look at this tech, so So basically we've we've laid a bit of a foundation, what we find here is Christ is in a very important part of his ministry. He has called to 12. He has spoken to the 12. He has dealt with demonic forces. He has told them Shut your mouths do not. He doesn't put it as brutal as I did them. But this is what he says. And he says he says, they fell down at the ground and they cried out, you are the Son of God. But he gave them strict orders not to tell others about Him. Right? Then it goes on. Then he calls the 12. And then let's go down to verse 20. Time is escaping us. It says then, then Jesus entered into the house and again a crowd gathered around him so that his disciples and him were not able to eat Christ actually at food. This is amazing, isn't it? That the Savior of the world actually sat down? He ate for some unknown reason. There is a there is a press out there that we think that Christ in the fullness sort of His deity never was eating or drinking or sitting down, because He is God in the image of Christ. But here we have Christ refuels themselves, was fuels himself in many parts of the text, it's important that we pick this detail up because there is power in the detail of the text. It's really important that we, that we do some expository sermon eyes in Bible study, and that we ask God that will open up the envelope of the text that he will take us deeper into the flow of what it is really saying. Then we come on to a really interesting, it was so interesting to meet and it is really absolutely revelational knowledge for me tonight, I can assure you, so Jesus enters into the house, there's nowhere to sit down, there's nowhere to refresh himself to have some water to just break bread and to be with his, his disciples are ones that is cold. But then suddenly, word breaks out word breaks out that Jesus is up to something. Suddenly, word is breaking out that you're up to sewing word is breaking out, that something is going on in your life, around your life, through your life with your life, and your family are quite in a position of discord with you, your family are looking at you looking at me whatever way we look at this and saying, who does who this Jesus thing is? He's out of his mind. Isn't it interesting that words that are spoken over our lives are really, really powerful words are really, really powerful. But these words did not affect Jesus. I've got to make sure that words from family, from culture, from society, from workplace issues, when they're spoken over us, do not affect us. Words are really, really powerful. And it says, when the family heard about this first 21 of Mark chapter three, when the family heard about this, they went to that house to take charge of him, your family want to take charge of you. That's made us go quiet. The family want to control us, the family want to control Jesus. Isn't it interesting? Here we have the Messiah, the Redeemer, the great I Am the high priest of high priests, the Anointed One, the chosen one, Emmanuel, God with us here we have God in the image of Christ, and His earthly family, want to take charge of him, your family, your brothers, your sisters, your parents, your husband, your wife, your brother, your work colleagues, your culture, your family, outside society, your workplace, friends, your line managers, everyone wants to take and have a controlling piece of you. This gives me comfort, because there are lots of people in the stretch of humanity, having words and dictatorship around them within the same house that we live in, trying to control and manipulate and tell and show how we should live and what the answers should be to our life what they want for us. It says here very clearly, they wanted to take charge of him. Be very careful of people that want to take charge of you. There is a difference between taking a charge of you and being concerned for you, as in a loving way there is there is a very big, enormous difference and enormous difference. So this is a really interest. This is really interesting. When the family heard about this, they went to him to take charge of him for they said Is he out of his mind? If they say that about Jesus, no wonder they say things about you and me. No wonder they want to manipulate you or me. As Jesus said, You see what they've been doing to me. So will they do it to you? As the way The world and family treat me. So will the world and family treat you. Now I know that there are many, many coming from beautiful and loving families, I am not knocking that whatsoever. I am not tearing that apart. I am making clear biblical fact that there are many that are anointed and called and chosen, and clearly have an anointing on their life, but still have within the family circle manipulators that are trying to take charge of one's life. is quite a revelation, isn't it to see through the text, then it gets really, really good. It gets really good. Then it says and then the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem, so not only as Christ got his family back in him, ranting and raving and telling him either you're out of your mind, what are you doing what you're calling 12? Who do you think you are? What are you doing? Who are you, Jesus, get back home, get back home and do the washing up. You got to cut the grass gonna get home? I ain't worried. We've heard it or whatever. We put the bins out Jesus. dustman has come in the morning, just just get home, family life, the drama of family life, his mom and his brothers wanted to take charge of him. Then it gets really, really interesting. It says in the teachers of the law came down from Jerusalem and said to him, he is possessed by Beelzebub. Now, without going into a theological stretch on the word Beelzebub. If he was to Google that and you look at that, it simply is talking about Lucifer, but it's talking about Lucifer, you will find Beelzebub being mentioned for the first time. In the Old Testament, I've got a thing where it is in the book of two kings. Forgive me to Kings, chapter one, it could be read about verse two, you'll love to check it you'll find that that is mentioned about Beelzebub. And what is it? The Beelzebub simply means the lord of filth. Very interesting, the Lord of flies. It's a very interesting study what the word Beelzebub means. So here we have a mocking, not only a mocking, but here we have the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He's got his family, drilling him get back home, Jesus and put the bins out, you're off your rocker, what you're talking about what you're doing, calling them 12 blokes, don't worry about them get home and put the rubbish out. And then also, you've got the teachers of the law. You've got the Jewish leaders coming down and saying this to him. He's got the spirit Beelzebub. But isn't this powerful? Back up a few moments, 30 minutes or more ago in the text that we was in? We find that the real spiritual entities recognize Jesus. Religious people, give us up the law, family members, churchgoers, I'll say churchgoers as the broader brush. Don't recognize who Jesus is. Philip didn't even know that the father was standing in front of him. Time times escaping us this push on. It says that Jesus called them over to him and he began to speak to them in parables. He said, How can Satan drive out Satan? If his kingdom is divided against itself that kingdom cannot stand? If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan opposes himself, he is divided. He cannot stand. His end has come verse 27th of March chapter three. In fact, no one can enter a strong man's house without first tying him up, then he can plan to the strong man's house. Verse 28. Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven of all their sins and every slanderous they utterance it says, But whoever blaspheme against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, and they are guilty of an eternal sin. Then we come on to verse 30. We're going to bring this to a bit of a bit of a pose here, bit of a bit of a pose. It says in verse 30. And he said this because they were saying, he has an impure spirit, then Jesus, mother and brothers are Live standing outside, they sent someone in to call him a crowd was sitting around him. And they told him your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you, who are my mother and my brothers he us. Then he looked at those in the seat seated circle around him and said, Here are my mother and my brothers, whoever God's will is in my brother and sister. My mother tried to bring this to some form of a pause, or a full stop is almost impossible. Because God is is still opening this scripture up. Isn't it interesting that how we feel sometimes in our innermost being that we all been manipulated, by work by family, by the children by husband, wife, brother or sister, parent, whoever it is, but it's very difficult to deal with the manipulators very difficult to deal with those that are vocally strong. Be careful of opinionated people. People with opinions are very dangerous to have around you. People that are surrounded us with opinions. I will put it scripturally like this. They're like the dogs. They're always grabbing up the ankles trying to mutilate the foot trying to grab out a you and get out of you and manipulate and shape you here we have a very simple, biblical truth that Jesus's mother and brothers clearly had a conversation. And there was more to this conversation than we could ever imagine or think about. Imagine what they were saying when they was going down to the house was Jesus up to now? We've heard that he's called 12 geezers, 12. blokes, What's he trying to do? Who does he think he is his brothers? His mum was marching down to take charge of him. What's Jesus up to now? Get back Jesus and put the bins out, get back and cook the dinner, get back and clean the floors, get back and sort your van out, get back and sort your toes out Jesus just get home. Isn't this interesting? Be careful of the people that we are surrounded with. It doesn't matter whether we're married to them, their family, their step family, they're in our workplace, they're in our home, there are children there, our brother, their sister, we got to be careful. We have to be very careful, because people influence our lives in a very strong way. Whether that's in ministry, whether that's in private life, whether that's in workplace issues, whether that's through college, university, people influence us. So we have to be very careful how we deal with the influences the world and social media. And social media are using the word of influences. We've got to be careful of influences on the social media or on the networks or motivational speakers gotta be very careful, because they will try to manipulate and they will try to shape and they will try to format and they will try to program governments are trying to program US governments are trying to make us into very robotic human beings. You've only got to look at the commute. You've only got to look at the commute to work. The school run, you've only got a look at we are very robotic and we are herded. And we are controlled by time. We are controlled by governments departments systems. But I'm going to leave you with this. This text that we've looked at tonight, is just so vast and so big and so enormous. You may have a loving and a beautiful and a very respectful family. You might be in a very comfortable workspace you might have everything that you see, okay. Just be aware and ask God open my eyes. We are living in very powerful and very fierce and very controlling times. family, work, home life, relationships, church life. We are all pressed and we are all stretched. When we are pressed and we are stretched We've got to make sure that the decisions we make. And in the will of the Father, I'm going to leave this now I'm going to drop this, I pray that God will just guide you and strengthen you. But what, and I hope and pray that I got there just in enough time before because we know that after a while we switch off. But that's what the scientists say. But we know that God is always revealing. So that also knocks that out of the ballpark in certain conversations. So God is always revealing God is always drawing. God speaks to us while we are asleep, God draws us while we're asleep, God, God, God, God fills us and refreshes us while we're asleep. So we don't need to be actually cognitive clicked in and working with our cognitive processing and our thoughts and our and our logic for for Christ for us to get Christ. Because Christ, we know Christ moves spiritually, he doesn't move through the physical he works, and guides us through the spiritual through His Word. So you have words spoken over your life, you are anointed, and you are cold. So you might have to, I might have to go back to the field for a while. I might have to go back into the society and just be still know that he's gone. Yes, you are called. Yes, there are people in your life. But maybe not for this moment, this second in time. God is putting people in you and around you and within you, your workspace, your relationships, your life, your culture, the circle of life. But timings are critical. Very quickly, very, very quickly. We went back to the Old Testament, we looked at the anointing, the anointing of King David, he didn't pick up that crown. Then he picked up the staff and he went back, he went back to, to the dirty field, he went back to sleeping out under the stars, he went back not to wash and he went back not to be able to bathe and to eat properly, he went back to the field of life. There is something very powerful in the field of life, in the darkness of life, and I don't mean the spiritual darkness. What I mean by the darkness of life of just the humdrum of living as a human being, be careful of the Shapers you know, YouTube and social media and all in places they and the hashtag out there. It's been for so long, it's the influencers. I don't want an influencer of the world. I want the creator of the world to shape me and to mold me and then we go, well, well, we'll pass the bend. Tell me in close. How do I do this? I pray this prayer. Lord, keep me on the potter's wheel. Because when I'm on the potter's will, I'm not in an I'm not in the voice. And I'm not in the vision of the influencers of social media. I'm not in the vision and the influencers in the political arenas. I'm not in the influencers, vision of the workplace. But when I'm on the potter's wheel, I'm in the Masters hands. There's no finer place to be than in the Masters hands. Lord, I pray that you will keep every one of us on and in the Masters hands and on the potter's will. May God bless you, because God is the one that shapes you. The Prophet, it says the Prophet went down to the potter's house. And he watched the master shaping that vessel into that vessel that the Master wanted that vessel to be. God wants to shape you. But your family are trying to shape you. Culture is trying to shape you. No wonder we're in pain, and we're hurting so much. And we got so many broken relationships, and so many broken lives because the world is trying to shape us and we are allowing the world to shape us and dictate to us rather than sitting on the potter's wheel and saying God shape me into the vessel you want me to be here we have in Mark chapter three, Jesus's mum and his brothers trying to take charge of him. Don't let the world take charge of you. Don't let your family that's a bold statement. Don't let your family take charge of you. Jesus the father, the deity is your shaper is your your God. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and everything else shall be added unto thee wherever you are tonight. To be very, very careful of the world trying to shape you, culture shaping you. People shaping you, family shaping you, ministers, shaping you religion shaping you, the world shaping you. Let God shape you. Let God let the master shake you. It's a painful place to be in the Masters hands because the master has to press hard. And the closer you feel the farthest press you you fill the hands of the master work in the clay. May God bless you tonight, wherever you are across this earth. May God shape you. You are anointed, you are called. You are blessed. Follow Jesus, don't follow me. Follow us so you can find us on I Heart Radio. You can find us on Buzzsprout you can find us on Spotify. And you can find us on so many social platforms. Thank you so much for following listening. I should say that more than anything not following but thank you for listening to everything that is taught that is spoken about podcasts, everything that goes out the book that has been pushed out for hashtag Christian stripe joke, all that sort of stuff, the conversations that we have comes about conversation. As I say, Please don't follow me. I will fail you. I will let you down time and time and time again. God, God will never fail you. God bless. Have a wonderful evening. In the mighty name of Jesus Christ, amen.
Close:Thank you for listening to Elim church Swanleys latest podcast. You can find us on Buzzsprout Spotify Apple Music iHeartRadio Google Play Alexa Mixcloud Facebook, Instagram and YouTube