West Village Church Podcast
West Village Church Podcast
…and the people went out to see what had happened...
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Series: …AND… | The Movement of God and His People through Mark
Title: Week 11 “…and the people went out to see what had happened.”
Text: Mark 5:1-20
Introducing The Prayer Of Blessing
SPEAKER_02Thank you very much, Karen Ann. I will take this and I will also bring up with me Cheryl Woodward. Can you all give her a hand? Okay, now we have uh been going through these prayer practices for a few weeks. There are five of them. If what we are talking about today seems of interest to you, you want to lean in, you haven't had the opportunity, the prayer of blessing is there's nice little, I don't want to say placards, little flyers front and back. Also, props to Nathan. Well designed. They look great. So um forever, thank you, Carrie. Um, so grab one, but we are trying to utilize these times to say, okay, Jesus, what does it look like to follow you in a different way? What does it look like to know you in a different way? And so there were a few folks that I asked, and they were semi-willing participants. Um, and uh, we you all have been hearing from them the last few weeks, and today we get to talk to Cheryl. So, can you come one step towards me? I will not bite. Um, so Cheryl Woodward was willing, I won't say overly thrilled, but willing to do this prayer practice, the prayer of blessing, and then talk to us about her experience. So, in your understanding, what is the prayer of blessing?
SPEAKER_00As I understand it, it's an intentional player prayer interceding for others that they will be blessed as I am blessed.
SPEAKER_02Okay. So you were willing to go through this practice. Um, even though I said, hey, would you be willing to look over it and and participate in this? What were your thoughts about the prayer of blessing before you entered into the time of practice?
SPEAKER_00I thought it was already I thought I was already blessing people. Okay. But now I see that it is a very different intentional way to pray and that I can add that to what I'm already doing.
SPEAKER_02Okay. I'd love to hear that. What you you did the thing. What were some of the things that you felt or that you heard while you did the prayer practice?
SPEAKER_00There was a lot, but I only have a couple. I used to pray for blessings on people, but I did it because they had a specific need. I now see this as different, and I plan to pray blessings on people, not because I know they have a need, but because I know God loves them. I also learned that our words are words speaking life or death into the atmosphere. In James 3 10, the word talks about the power of the tongue. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be. So I need to watch what comes out of my mouth towards myself as well as others.
SPEAKER_02I think we can have an entire message specifically about the what we say to ourself before long before we get to the things that we say towards other people. So we'll just leave that on a shelf for later. Maybe you can pray about when you'll come and talk to us more about that. Um I'll get right on that. Right on that. Um and then so you went through the practice, you got to seek God's face for other people, to stand in a way like interceding, going and saying, Lord, whoever this is, bless them, bring them to them and and and truly bring them to the Father. So why, or no, poorly worded question. Why would you encourage others to participate in this sort of prayer this week?
SPEAKER_00Well, some of the people that God asked me to pray for for this practice of blessing were not people that I would have chosen to bless. But by day three, my heart was changed with more compassion for them. More of God's love was filling me up towards them. And in that, I was blessed. God says in Deuteronomy 30, 19, I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, and I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing. Therefore, choose life that both thou and thy seed might live. So actions as well as words can bring a blessing or a curse. And I looked up the definition of the curse, and it means simply means the blessing is less intense, or the blessing will be reduced. This may have started out as a practice, but now my understanding has changed, and so will the way I pray. In Proverbs 1921, it says that life and death are in the power of the tongue. And there is so much negativity spoken out in the world. I want to do my part to uh counter that with good. You asked, why would I recommend others participate in this? And I would simply ask, why not? Only good can come out of the participation in the prayer blessing. Blessing others is fun, and probably in the process, you'll get blessed.
SPEAKER_02This is amazing. I I think I'd the Lord was thankful to have you up here and and be the one who is giving testimony. The fact that I suckered you into asking, and then you gave it to the Holy Spirit, and he said, Yeah, I really do want you to do it.
SPEAKER_00And then I tried to get out of it.
SPEAKER_02And then she tried to get out of it. And then God, the comedian, had different plans, and here you are. And on the backside of it, you're saying, I'm the one who was changed.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_02The prayer of blessing, something that you're interceding and wanting good for other people, and you're saying, That might have happened. I'm the one who was blessed.
Words Create Life Or Death
SPEAKER_01Cheryl, thank you so much for sharing with us. Can we all thank her? My goodness. God is so kind. God is so kind.
Compassion For Hard People
Welcome And Series Setup In Mark
Setting The Scene Across The Lake
Demons Recognise And Fear Jesus
SPEAKER_02Um uh I would like to welcome you all uh back or for the first time here at West Village. Um, I would like to welcome you to a four Andrew Sunday. Um, we have all four Andrews at West Village in attendance. Um, everybody is welcome at West Village. I'm just letting you know Andrews are extra special. So there are four of us today. Um, you can just guess who we are. And if you get it wrong, just keep going. It's fine. Um, if this is one of your first times, and your name is not Andrew, um, we do have Bibles to the side. And those are here with the communion elements. We want you to know that if you came without a Bible, we will be going through the Bible. We are going to be talking through the book of Mark. And if you're like, I don't, I don't know how, I don't have a Bible, I don't know where we are, don't worry. Come and grab a Bible, take it back with you to your seat, and then keep it. It's our gift to you. We want you to be with us. As I mentioned, we are currently in the book of Mark in a series called And, The Movement of God and His People. Now, our hope throughout this series is that one, we get to see Jesus for who he really is. Two, we get to see that if if he is the Messiah, that we draw near to him and we rest in his presence because he is worth being with and knowing and being changed by. And then from our place of fullness, because we have come to him, because we have drawn near to him, be from that place of fullness, then we are sent out. The movement of God, we continue to move forward as his kingdom continues to advance, that we are propelled to join him in what he is doing. I will often say that God is moving and we are riding on the best coattails possible. Okay, so let's go ride some coattails. Um, okay, last week Andrew Hawes did a great job bringing us from the western shore of the Sea of Galilee to the middle of the water as we were reading about uh the calming of the storm. Well, this week we're gonna move from there and we're going to land the boat on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee. Uh so turn in your Bibles to Mark chapter five. That is where we're joining up today. Verse one, it says, They went across the lake to the region of the Garrisons. Um, now, I actually forgot because in all the hubbub, do we have the map? Do we have the picture of we do? This is great. Okay. So uh there's a really great scholar online. Um, I will try to link this in the notes, where he has tons of photos of all of the major stories in the Gospels. So there, top left, we see Capernaum, and then out towards the east, we have our sea calmed icon. It could have been exactly right there. Who knows? Um, and then they move all the way over to the eastern side, right? So there where you see it marked arrival at beach. This is an area called Kercy. You can see Kercy labeled, the tombs labeled, and the steep hill. These are all places that are going to be mentioned in the passage today. Uh, you can go back to another one where people aren't seeing this and we're not all in darkness. Um, this eastern side uh of the Sea of Galilee, this is the region called the Decapolis. Um, this is a it, it's like a Roman city. It's like 10 Roman cities grouped into one, functions like a city-state. It was an area of high commerce. It was filled with Gentiles and likely a high number of Jews as well. But to be clear, just like Andrew mentioned, this on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, this is not Jewish territory. This is not where the Jews reside. This is not their area. This is Roman area. This is where the nations are. So Jesus is not going to happy territory already. All right, so the kingdom of God is quite literally advancing across the Sea of Galilee, landing on the eastern side, and now is coming into what the world is. For our story today, here is my request to you right at the start, note how everyone and everything acts or reacts to Jesus. Try to put yourself in the sandals of each group, um, except the demons. Right? So I want you to observe how they act, but don't put yourself in their shoes. Okay, we can do that, we're good. All right, verse two. When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This is not our first demon-possessed impure spirit person that has occurred in Mark. So back at the beginning, Mark 1, 24 to 25, we read our first miracle. This is the demons talking to Jesus. What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God. Be quiet, said Jesus sternly. Come out of him. So Jesus, he is teaching in this context. He's teaching, he's teaching. The demon hears that Jesus is teaching and then starts screaming. Right? The demons hate Jesus, but they are subject to him. Demons and Jesus are like oil and water. They don't mix. They don't mix at all. But hold that analogy only with a second because we're going to talk about something else later. Later in chapter one, it tells us that he healed lots of people. And all of the people that he healed who had demons, he told them, take off and hush. Don't talk about me. Out of here. They don't like him, but they are subject to him. So when he says go, they go. When he says hush, they hush. They have to follow because they are subject to him. All right, jump forward. Uh Mark chapter 3, verse 11. It says, Whenever the impure spirit saw him, they fell down before him and they cried, You are the Son of God. So note this, it's a real quick verse. Jesus has a 100% working uh relationship over the demons. Always success. Whenever the impure spirit saw him, they fell face down. It wasn't that. Whenever Jesus happened to notice them, they weren't sneaking by. They weren't trying to just hide in a corner. Maybe he won't notice me. Whenever, whenever the impure spirits saw him, they fell down and cried out before him, You are the Son of God. So it's actually not like oil and water that separate and never come together. It is more like magnets. Jesus walks by, impure spirits go to him, and then he sends them out. Okay. So what do we see already in our story today? Jesus rolls up on the shore, gets out of the boat, and the demon-possessed man makes a beeline from the hidden hillside home among the tombs of the dead and runs right to his feet to be in his presence.
SPEAKER_01When Jesus moves, movement ripples.
SPEAKER_02When Jesus moves, movement ripples. Hold on to that phrase. You're going to hear it a time or two. Verse 3. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, and he tore the chains apart, and he broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him night and day among the tombs and in the hills. He would cry out, he would cut himself with stones. What do you feel towards this man? What do you feel towards him? Did he live in a nice home with others? No. He was out away from the people and he lived among the dead. How did it go out there with him? How did he act? He was screaming and yelling and crying and cutting himself with stones night and day. That sounds miserable. And how did people interact with him? Right? Was he just having a real bad day? But everybody was like, hey, what's up? No. They rarely interacted with him if they could help it. And if they did have to interact with him, that was because they were trying to bind him and subdue him and throw chains and irons around him. He couldn't be contained. He broke all the restraints. He is fully and completely alone. He sleeps in the elements. He's rejected. He's an outcast. He's dangerous to himself and to others.
SPEAKER_01What do you feel towards this guy? Verse six.
SPEAKER_02When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and he fell down on his knees in front of him. The scary, likely, smelly guy who keeps everyone in the hills, who keeps away from everyone in the hills of the dead. He runs to Jesus and he kneels.
SPEAKER_01When Jesus move, when Jesus moves, movement ripples. Man comes. Verse 7.
Legion Named And The Pigs Drown
SPEAKER_02He shouted at the top of his voice, What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God, in God's name? Don't torture me. For Jesus had said to him, Come out of this man, you impure spirit. Okay? Let's adjust our imaginations a bit with these two verses. All right. So Jesus sees the man. The demons see him. They come tearing off down the hill as they are running. Jesus says, Come out of him. And with that command, they start hooting and hollering through the guy and screaming and yelling, don't do this. In the midst of the run, and again, I just love this scene. It's like, at what point is this audible? And then at what point is it like, is it a lot of murmuring and then loudness and then clarity? And then what is he saying? And then at some point it's clear he the demons are rightly calling Jesus his title. He is son of the most high God. And yet, with all of the begging, with all the things that the demon is yelling at Jesus, Jesus is not dissuaded. He's firm, he is resolute. So, demon-possessed hillside man down at Jesus' feet, verse 9, Jesus asked him, What's your name? My name is Legion, he replied, For we are many. And he begged Jesus again and again not to send him out of the area. I don't know how this goes. I keep trying to like imagine it in my mind. Does Jesus just say it once, like that good parent that thinks once is enough? And then the demons continue to beg and to beg and to ask again and again and again. Does Jesus have to repeat himself? Does he have to kind of say, like, I'm serious? He's not having to convince the demon. He knows what he said, but the demon continues to beg and to beg and to beg. He said, Okay, my name is Legion. Legion is actually a Roman designation for the largest military unit that was contained 5,000 to 5,500 soldiers. Right? So when Jesus asks their name, maybe the demons are trying to be clever. Maybe they're giving an exact number of demons in their role. And maybe they're just trying to be contextually accurate and use a word that was known by all at the time. I don't know. What is known is there's a lot of them and they don't want to leave and they don't want to be tortured above all. They want to stay and continue hurting and harming and causing evil. Jesus, don't send us away, let us stay. Verse 11: A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside, and the demons begged, Jesus, send us among the pigs, allow us to go into them. They had to follow Jesus. His word was final. Verse 13, he gave them permission. The impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about 2,000 in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned. The demons, that whole crazy number that were contained within this man, they were no match for Jesus. Do you notice? This man was tortured, lived in the hillside, nobody could contain him. The legion comes before Jesus. Jesus says, Go, and they go. That was the end of it. I don't see any tales of Jesus pulling out chains or irons to subdue the guy. There is no special rigmarole that Jesus went through. He said, Leave. And poof, they were gone. And furthermore, the demons actually didn't get what they wanted, right? Yes, he sent them to the pigs, but they wanted to go into the pigs because they wanted to continue to continue to cause mayhem and evil. They didn't want to be sent back to the abyss. They didn't want to be tortured again. Just like Andrew talked about last week. Do you see the visual of this? What is the sea? The sea represented the chaos, the abyss, the unknown, something that was out of control. And the pigs take the demons, and they are sentenced into the chaos, the abyss.
SPEAKER_01They are lost back to where they came from. When Jesus moves, movement ripples. Okay, you might think I'm crazy. I think this is where it starts to get exciting.
The Crowd Sees Wholeness And Panics
SPEAKER_02We just cut a whole bunch of demons numbering at least 2,000 to 5,500 living inside a man being cast into pigs and running to their watery death. Now it gets exciting. Okay, verse 14. Those tending to pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what happened. Guess what? There was an audience the whole time. It wasn't just Jesus and his disciples and this hillside man possessed with demons. It was seen by the herdsmen. The herdsmen are not dispassionate about what is happening right now. Either they owned the pigs or they were hired to take care of the pigs. Regardless of their relationship to the pigs, this was a very expensive result.
SPEAKER_01Pigs all died.
SPEAKER_02So the herdsmen now go into town. And I like how it makes sure to demarcate both. They go into town and the countryside. Of all the places they can go, whoever will listen to them, they have got a story. And they're going to tell everybody. So they do. And buddy, that crowd grew. Folks ran from town and country. They came from all over. They wanted to see what had happened. Right? So your original herdsman, group one, that I would like for you to observe. And then this growing crowd coming, coming from where they are in town, coming to see what has happened to this man, who did it, and what happened to the pigs when Jesus moves. Movement ripples. Verse 15. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the Legion of Demons sitting there, dressed and in his right mind.
SPEAKER_01And they were afraid. And they had already established how scared they were of it. Who is this man who exceeded that power so effortlessly?
SPEAKER_02That simply spoke a legion of demons out of a broken man and made him whole. Like the disciples at the end of chapter four from our passage last week, they saw the one who had more power than the thing that scared them witless, and they were afeared.
SPEAKER_01Verse 16.
SPEAKER_02Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man, and told about the pigs as well.
Rethinking Jesus Beyond Comfort
SPEAKER_01And then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region. Do you ever wonder that? Pause with me for a second. Okay.
SPEAKER_02Do you ever ask why you think what you think about Jesus? All right. So this is for everybody. Whether you are a longtime Christian, Jesus loving, you call him Lord, you are all in. All the way down to, Andrew, I don't think about Jesus ever. Okay?
SPEAKER_01So everybody, some wherever you are on that spectrum, how'd you get there? Was it a teacher? Was it a friend? A parent?
SPEAKER_02A family member? Did you learn about Jesus taking time reading a book or the Bible? Okay, now wherever it was, whatever started it, what has impacted or adjusted your present understanding of him? When was the last time that you adjusted your understanding of Jesus? Welcome into my crazy space of head. Because when I read these verses, they cause me to realize as of late, I may have made Jesus into something that he wasn't. Jesus heals a man of his demons, and a bunch of pigs die. The result of which are a group of people scared beyond belief who ask him to leave their entire region. And when I read that they ask him to leave, I'm shocked. Why am I shocked? Why would their fear confuse me? A strange foreign man appeared out of nowhere. They solved the town's hillside screamer issue. And he also looks to be responsible for the death of 2,000 pigs. And I think, wow, fear? What a surprise. No, it's fitting. Fear is fitting. When I think about Jesus right now in the present state, I know that he is kind. I know that he is love. I know that he is worthy of worship and praise. Right? Sunday school Jesus.
SPEAKER_01Happiness. If you've seen the no, I won't go with that movie. However, this same Jesus is powerful.
SPEAKER_02He's not just powerful, but he holds everything together by the word of his power. He is not created, but the creator that has authority over all things that have been made, he's God Almighty. He's Lord above all. He is to be worshipped, yes, but he is also to be feared. When this Jesus shows up in your world, in your town, in your life, he shows up with the fullness of all that he is. Jesus is the Son of God most high, the good news for all humanity. But is humanity, are you, am I, are we ready to receive him in his fullness?
SPEAKER_01Are you ready to see him more as he is and adjust your understanding to reflect him rightly? Do you want to? When Jesus moves, movement ripples. Verse 18.
SPEAKER_02As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him.
SPEAKER_01This guy was 100% on board to follow Jesus for who he was.
SPEAKER_02He knew how bad off he was. He knew his loneliness, his rejection, his place as the perpetual outcast in society.
SPEAKER_01He was he was done with the pain.
SPEAKER_02He was whole. He was thinking rightly. He was the happiest he may have ever been. He wanted more of this good news. And he wants to be with Jesus. I asked us at the start to see how different groups reacted to Jesus' movement, right? He arrives. He is declared the Son of God, Son of the Most High God, yes, by demons, but it was accurate. He heals a man, he casts out the demons, pigs die. What are the ripples? The demons fear and submit to him. The herdsmen aren't happy and they want him gone. The crowd is afraid and they want him gone. The hillside man is whole and he wants to be with him. The ripples of Jesus movement results in more movement. It continues on. For some, it's towards him. For some, far away. And for all, it doesn't matter. Nobody is in the same place when Jesus arrives. Everybody has been moved. The demons don't get to continue to terrorize. They meet judgment. The herdsmen and the crowd are jostled from a world where it is okay to leave a man to live in the hills. Because there's no hope. To one where hope unexpectedly arrived in the disconcerting form of a Jewish man, and they want nothing to do with it. And the hillside man is moved forward towards his literal savior. He wants to be near him and with him forever. This is great. Jesus heals him. This man is now whole. What a force. He's gonna team up, tag team with Jesus. They're gonna go out with the disciples, and it's gonna be wonderful. Verse 19, Jesus did not let him.
SPEAKER_01What? Jesus, why? Why don't you let him stay with him? With you. Why? Verse 19, Jesus did not let him, but said, Go home.
SPEAKER_02Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.
SPEAKER_01So the men and man went away.
SPEAKER_02And he began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed. Our hillside man, at least according to the book of Mark, try not to get ahead of what all of Scripture says and what we know of history. According to the book of Mark, this is our first missionary. He was sent out by Jesus him to by Jesus Himself to declare who Jesus was and what he had done in this man. Did you all catch his extensive training process that he went through? Did you note the number of hours of classwork that he had to complete before telling people about Jesus? You all caught it? Here it is. Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how he has had mercy on you. Fiend.
SPEAKER_01When Jesus moves, movement ripples.
SPEAKER_02Jesus left a faithful witness. One faithful witness in a Gentile nation to declare who makes all things new, and he was the walking proof. What was the impact? People were amazed. It wasn't just a story passed on between people. Did you hear about the one guy? Did you hear that one story? He shows up physically and says, I once was blind, but now I see. I once was absolutely crazy with demons, and y'all wouldn't talk to me, and actually tried to bind me in chains. I remember you, Bruce. I know. But guess what?
Lean In Instead Of Pushing Away
SPEAKER_01This is what Jesus has done for me. I'm whole. It's all because of Jesus. As we close today, I really want to my heart.
SPEAKER_02It breaks for the man and is excited by his reaction.
SPEAKER_01When Jesus moves, we are all forced to react.
SPEAKER_02There is one reaction we observe in the passage. People see Jesus, they see what he does, and they say, You're freaking me out. Get out. I am not ready to handle what you are bringing. You might say this is the good news, but it's actually causing chaos and a loss of my income. I'm not ready for you. If today you are hearing about Jesus for the first time or watching what he does, and that's how you want to act or react, the story says you can.
SPEAKER_01I really want to invite you not to. But that is one movement that people have made from Jesus is away. Can I invite you to lean in instead?
SPEAKER_02See the ripples that come from Jesus movement, the very first one that we see is actually towards him. I don't want to make too much of this. I used to have a friend pastor who would say, like, if he was going to talk about what he thinks about the passage, he would step away from the pulpit. So it would be really clear, like this was his thought and not what he saw in the text. I really want to know what those conversations were like the moment the guy was healed and they put clothes on him, and he's just sitting and talking with Jesus.
SPEAKER_01To be a fly on that hillside.
SPEAKER_02Was this actually Jesus' time of telling him more of who he was?
SPEAKER_01Was the guy finally getting love and attention for the first time in an untold number of years? He leaned in.
SPEAKER_02Whatever was shared during that time, whatever was known about who he was and now who he is in Jesus, he wanted more. And I want to invite every one of us. A holy and proper and good thing for us to do is to lean in to Jesus, to come towards him, to not jump to the exciting part at the end where he sends the guy out. Let's not jump there too fast. Get in his presence, get before him, get to know him, to love him, the one who loves you so. I'm moved by this passage because this man clearly knows how bad off he was. He isn't fooling anybody. And I want to remind you whether you have been a longtime Christian or you might be coming to him for the first time, I want you to know that your pre-Jesus state is very broken. And if you have come to Christ, he has made you go from death to life. That is a big change. It is not a small change, it is not a moral change, it is not a new set of choices.
SPEAKER_01You were blind and now you see. You were broken and now you are whole.
Tell One Person This Week
SPEAKER_02Go into his presence, sit in his presence, see his face, move towards him. And the last thing I will certainly aim to make this quick is what we see in this final call. It is a movement towards Jesus, and then it is a movement from Jesus. He sends the man out. If I wanted to try to spend way too much time in the passage, you can see everybody is making directional choices. Everyone is being sent. The demons want to stay. They want to be sent to where they are. They are sent out. The guy who actually wants to stay with Jesus is told no, and he's sent back. But he's sent to his people. Jesus has put you here, and if you have been made whole, if you have been called his, he is sending you out as well. To the people where you live, learn, work, and play with this good news.
SPEAKER_01He isn't asking for perfection. Tell your story of what Jesus did for you.
SPEAKER_02Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how He has had mercy on you.
SPEAKER_01Jesus has called every one of us here, right now, to this greater Victoria area. Quick math.
SPEAKER_02If I am to tell people, if I'm going to tell two people about Jesus today, and I do so every day to next Sunday, if we include the Sundays, how many people have I told Jesus about? I know this is not math class, but y'all are way slow. Okay, so that's 16. All right, so it's eight days, two, multiply.
SPEAKER_01Okay. 16 people. Let's say there are 200 people here today. Ballpark. Let's say half of you. Half of you say, I want to tell somebody this week, one person about Jesus. That's a hundred. One hundred is greater than sixteen. And we all got to participate. What if we did that every week? Fun, quick little math.
SPEAKER_02I'll I'm just not gonna ask you guys to do math. I'll just tell you numbers. Okay. So if if 100 of us did this once a week for the whole year, starting in January, which is already past, I can't change the past, but for math's sake, 5,200 people. We'd hear about Jesus if we did this. If half of us did this, right? We think there are about 75 churches in the Greater Victoria area.
SPEAKER_01What if we all did that? What if we all did that?
SPEAKER_02100 people, 75 churches. I did the math so we all don't have to. 390,000 people would have the opportunity to hear about Jesus in the course of a year. Now, last time I checked, we as the Greater Victoria area are a little over 400,000.
SPEAKER_01So all of Victoria can hear about Jesus in a little over a year. Don't get lost in the math.
SPEAKER_02If Jesus is your savior, my encouragement, find one person this week. One person this week that you can tell about Jesus.
SPEAKER_01It does not have to be big. Go home to your own people where you live, learn, work, and play.
SPEAKER_02And tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how He has had mercy on you.
SPEAKER_01As the band comes up, we're going to take a moment and pray.
SPEAKER_02When Jesus moves, movement ripples. So what's the movement in you? What's the movement that God is calling you towards? So let's take a moment, close our eyes. Where do we need to go? Jesus, where are you calling me? Let's go to Him and pray. Jesus, we give you praise. We thank you for being you and all that you are. Lord, certainly forgive us when we make you into a bite-sized Jesus, one that we are comfortable with, one that we think we can understand, one that we think we can control. As your church that has been sent by you, Jesus, we come before you in worship and praise and great things. Give us the strength and the boldness this week to tell people how amazing you are. And using our own lives as that story of where you have moved. You are worthy of all the praise we can give. Please receive it. In your name we pray. Amen.